Talking France

Why France faces a 'cold Turkey' winter and how do French high streets stay independent?

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Episode notes

In this week's episode of Talking France we find out why people in the country could be facing a "tsunami" of rising prices in the months ahead.

The mayor of Paris is considering a ban on electric scooter rental schemes. Are they just too dangerous or do they offer a vital, environmentally friendly and exciting way to get around the City of Light? We hear both sides of the argument.

We also learn about a French philosopher known as BHL and find out why he's always in war zones... with his shirt half unbuttoned and his hair immaculately coiffed.

And have you ever wondered why the streets of French town and city centres are home to so many independent shops and cafes rather than just the chain stores? We explain why.

And a new international ranking shows the French are still lagging behind almost all of Europe when it comes to proficiency in speaking English. Now we at The Local are in no place to lecture anyone about language ability but are there reasons the French struggle compared to the Germans or Nordic countries and could they one day top the rankings?

Host Ben McPartland iss joined by our usual guests The Local France's editor Emma Pearson, journalist Gen Mansfield, politics analyst John Lichfield and language expert Camille Chevalier-Karfis.

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