French intelligence
Some interesting facts about the French foreign minister, Jean-Marc Ayrault, for the benefit of shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry. Ayrault was elected mayor of Saint-Herblain, a suburb of Nantes, in 1977 aged just 27. He went on to become mayor of the entire city. In 2012 he was appointed prime minister by incoming president François Hollande. His appointment caused a crisis in Arabic newsrooms because when pronounced properly his name sounds like Lebanese slang for penis. Ayrault resigned as prime minister in 2014 after disappointing local election results for the Socialists, but made a comeback as foreign minister in February.
No visa necessary
The EU threatened to force British travellers to other EU countries to apply for visas. Which nation’s passport-holders can visit the most countries without a visa?
| Finland, Sweden, UK | 173 |
| Denmark | 172 |
| Germany, Luxembourg, US, Belgium, Italy, Netherlands |
171 |
| Canada, France, Ireland, Japan, Norway, Portugal, Spain |
170 |
(There are generally accepted to be 195 sovereign nations in the world, or 196 if you include Taiwan.
Comments
Join the debate for just $5 for 3 months
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for $5.
UNLOCK ACCESS Just $5 for 3 monthsAlready a subscriber? Log in