Tagged / France

New Year’s Eve Celebrations Without the Fizz? New Publication in BULR by Martine Hardwick

Fusion themes, open access, PG research, REF Subjects, student research

Martine Hardwick, Lecturer in Law and PhD Candidate in the Department of Humanities and Law, has published a timely commentary in the Bournemouth University Law Review looking ahead to a change in the law on 31 December 2019. On this date, opposite sex couples will finally be able to register their civil partnerships – which until now has been reserved for same sex couples.

However, this change in the law raises important questions for cohabiting couples. Despite longing for more protection and fairness from the law, co-habiting couples will not be presented with the opportunity as heterosexual couples to celebrate on New Year’s Eve. Instead, they will still be bound by the strict rules of formation and dissolution which mirror those of marriage.

Questioning whether the UK has missed an opportunity to provide more rights for cohabiting couples and highlighting a solution drawn from France in the form of Pacte Civil de Solidarité (PACS), Martine argues that learning lessons from the French legal system has to be the way forward in giving cohabitants protection while respecting their autonomy.

You can read Martine Hardwick’s full article here.

Interreg France (Channel) England has introduced new website

Funding opportunities, innovation

Good news for those interested in applying for Interreg Europe funded grants.

Interreg France (Channel) England (Interreg FCE) has introduced channelmanche.com website, updating website address to something more user-friendly. The new site incorporates a simple, modern design allowing users to easily access the information they need.

Other changes include new pages for both Micro-Projects and Regular Projects, with the application processes now clearly laid out in a step-by-step guide. Layout of the Programme’s specific objectives also has been improved and created a dedicated page for new Targeted Projects initiative.

If you have an idea for a cross-border project what fits into Interreg France (Channel) England scope, please get in touch with your contact person from RKEO Funding Development Team to discuss further steps for developing a competitive proposal. The process starts with submitting a brief outline of your idea.

Interreg Europe helps regional and local governments across Europe to develop and deliver better policy. By creating an environment and opportunities for sharing solutions, Interreg Europe aims to ensure that government investment, innovation and implementation efforts all lead to integrated and sustainable impact for people and place.

Interreg FCE has been set up to foster economic development in the south of the UK and north of France by funding innovative projects which have a sustainable cross-border benefit in the Programme’s eligible regions. Eligible area consists of the South and East Coasts of England from Cornwall to Norfolk, and the North Coast of France from Finistère to Pas-de-Calais.

Autism as a priority for Horizon 2020?

The French government is to call for research into autism to be listed as a priority area in Horizon 2020, the successor to the EU’s Framework programme for research. The French minister for social cohesion, presented an outline of the plan at a recent cabinet meeting and will produce a detailed set of goals by the end of this year, following a decision to make the condition France’s ‘national cause’ for 2012.

The government intends to ‘intensify’ research in biology, physiology and the social sciences to expand knowledge of autism. This is likely to include an interdisciplinary research stream supported by the National Research Agency. The plan highlights the need to reinforce the rights of citizens with autism and to increase public awareness of the condition in order to support social inclusion. If you are interested in autism research and want to get in to EU funding, now would be a great time to start building links with French researchers in this area.