Public car parks: fee increase of €60 and other Monaco news

The first week of spring is coming to an end. And if you don’t want to miss anything interesting that was going on in the Principality, read HelloMonaco digest.

Public car parks: fee increase of €60 to deter practice of monopolising parking spaces

Every year, the Public Car Parks Office reassesses rates for all of its hourly fees and season tickets, including “residential”, day and night, working hours, business use, two-wheel vehicle, etc.

In 2021, it has decided to add an additional monthly fee of €60 for season ticket holders whose parked car has not been moved in a month. In practical terms, this additional fee targets those users who have a residential day-and-night season ticket (€106), which gives them the right to a non-allocated space, and who then leave their vehicle there permanently, de facto turning the public space into a “reserved space”.

A prestigious Monaco foundation supports the restoration of multiple Louvre artworks

MB Art Foundation has made a decision to support the restoration of multiple artworks from the Louvre collections that were particularly liked by Francis Bacon. An established connection has been set up between the Louvre museum and the Francis Bacon MB Art Foundation. The man who founded it, Majid Boustany, decided to involve the Monegasque Institution with the prestigious French museum by being its patron. This new step between Paris and the Principality is certainly a newsworthy item.

Thanks to its substantial charitable donations, the organization gained great attention, which contributed to increased exposure of the company’s philanthropic activities, culminating in a fund devoted to conservation and promotion of exhibits within the museum.

‘Siberia’, the new filming project by Luc Jacquet goes Russian Far East to surprise and amaze

A new extraordinary adventure is about to begin for Luc Jacquet, the skilled award-winning film maker, director and co-writer of ‘March of the Penguins’, the paramount long-length nature documentary who was awarded the Oscar in 2006. Next August, he will start a two-month filming that will take him and his crew from the Chukchi Sea, within the Arctic Circle, to the Sea of Japan.

The Future Monaco Yacht Show Designed Around Superyacht Clients

The Informa Group, owner of the Monaco Yacht Show, took advantage of the postponement of the 2020 Show to work closely with the yachting industry on redesigning the event. The rebuild is designed to rise to the commercial and marketing challenges facing the market, by promoting the superyacht lifestyle to a new set of wealthy clients.

A Steering Committee has been created, made up of decision-makers from the yachting industry. It will play an advisory role, supporting the MYS development strategy as it unfurls over coming years – and providing formal recognition of Informa’s commitment to working in partnership with the industry. Informa also plans to provide financial support, matching the annual amounts invested by the industry in its marketing action plan to showcase the superyacht lifestyle.

The keenly awaited Monaco Yacht Show will be driven more powerfully than ever by the superyacht clientele; it will offer a bespoke experience of unparalleled prestige.

Monaco’s Venturi Ace Mortara Stuns The Racing World

Edoardo Mortara had a flying start to the 7th Formula ePrix season for Monaco’s Venturi at Riyadh in Saudi Arabia. The Italian-Swiss driver is the centre-piece of the team led by Susie Wolff. 

He caught the world’s motor enthusiasts’ attention when after qualifying 4th on the grid in his single-seater he literally catapulted past the front-runners later to haul himself up to a magnificent second place on the podium. 

Second annual report on work of Women’s Rights Committee published

The Women’s Rights Committee has recently published its second annual report.

The report documents all of the work carried out in 2020 with which Committee members, representing Monegasque institutions, Government departments and women’s rights associations, were involved.

In the report, Committee Chair Laurent Anselmi emphasises that “promoting and protecting women’s rights has never been as relevant as during this COVID-19 pandemic and the Prince’s Government has always been committed to strengthening these rights.”

Police Checks: Almost 300 people Turned Away from Monaco

Police in Monaco tightened up access to the Principality over the weekend, during France’s lockdown. The Police checks were put in place to help avoid an influx of people from France, given that the rules in the fight against Covid-19 are now different for different regions.

Monaco has decided not to enter lockdown on weekends, unlike its French neighbours. According to Minister of State, Pierre Dartout, these checks show solidarity with French authorities. Controlling access to the Principality also contributes to enforcing the French rule of travel limited to 5 km.

Increased Support by the Principality for Hard Hit Sectors

Jean Castellini, Minister of Finance and the Economy, and Laurence Garino, Director of the Welcome Office, have recently presented to the press the additional support measures for companies most affected by the health crisis. The context is that even if the Monegasque economy has held up rather well, aid and support measures for sectors in difficulty need to be maintained and adapted.

Monaco seeks Volunteers for New Mouth Swab Tests

Monaco is currently seeking volunteers to test the reliability of new oral tests. Launched on 18 February, the study hopes to help replace nasopharyngeal swabs. The nasal swab, which measures about fifteen centimetres long, is not very comfortable for the patient being tested, especially for a child who may move around during the sample. The study, which is named “Cordages” is underway at the Espace Léo-Ferré.

The princely government has selected two types of oral swabs to try to establish whether a mouth swab test is as effective as a nasal swab. The study is currently asking the local population to participate in order to determine the reliability of these tests, which are much less invasive than a nasopharyngeal test.