Holiday chaos for Britons as French strikes over oil refineries explode

FAMILIES heading to France for their holidays face travel chaos as militant trade unionists seek to bring the country to a standstill.

France has been gripped by weeks of violent protest and a quarter of its 1 ,000 petrol stations have run dry after workers protesting against new labour laws closed seven of its eight oil refineries.

Riot squads have used tear gas and water cannons to lift the blockades, but the government has been forced to dip into emergency petrol stocks for the first time in six years. Power supplies have also been threatened by militants occupying an electricity control station in Colayrac in the south-west.

It is bad news for the thousands of British families planning trips to France for next week’s half-term holiday south of the Border.

There are reports that the protests have already left some UK tourists stranded in France.

More trouble is expected in major cities including Paris today when mass street demonstrations will take place. The transport chaos is likely to worsen next week when rolling strikes hit the main railway provider SNCF and the Paris metro.

Estimates suggested yester- day that four in ten petrol stations around Paris are struggling to stay open.

British drivers in France are among those caught up in the chaos. AA president Edmund King said: ‘Breakdown services in Europe have been taking calls from UK drivers who have run out of fuel. We are recovering vehicles stuck at the side of the road to places of safety until fuel supplies are resumed.’

The unions are protesting attempts by the French government to reform labour laws, making it easier for employers to hire and fire staff. The Leftist CGT union is leading opposition to the reforms, while President Francois Hollande’s socialist government has said it is ‘not willing to negotiate’.

It is two weeks until the European football championships and pressure is growing on the government to find a solution.

‘Stuck at the side of the road’