French govt keeps up tough line as petrol shortages ease

Paris

THE French government is maintaining a hard line ahead of a fresh wave of protest over a bitterly disputed labour law that has seen demonstrators blockading oil refineries and strikes paralysing the transport network.

The escalating unrest, which has gathered pace over the last week sparking petrol shortages that forced the government to dip into strategic fuel reserves, comes just weeks before football fans flood into the country for the Euro 2016 championships.

At issue is a controversial labour law which the government forced through Parliament without a vote aimed at freeing up France's famously rigid labour market and bringing down high unemployment, which unions say favours companies at the expense of workers' rights. They …