Scott morrison scampers back to sydney. He apologizes for taking a family holiday when a string of vicious wildfires are still burning back home. A court finds France Telecom and its former c. E. O. Guilty of moral harassment. This over a decade after several employees committed suicide as the Company Launched a massive restructuring program. We will have the very latest in our business update. Also coming up in the next 60 minutes of the program, prayers notre n read in paparis dame cathedral every christmtma for centuries, even during the horrors of the two world wars wars. But this december Midnight Mass wont be held in the church following this years devastating fire. More on that coming up. Tay tuned. British m. P. s are gearing up to vote on the Prime Ministers bricksity deal this friday. With Boris Johnson promising to get this vote done and dusted before the christmas break. He said that his governments post to build a close build a relationship with the e. U. Previous attempts to get this famous Withdrawal Agreement in westminster failed. But with the tories now enjoying a large majority, the blueprint could pass s more smoothly toda for more we head now to london and bring in our correspondent, who is standing by outside in westminster. First of all, the different makeup of m. P. s sitting on the famous green benches of house of commons, how might this change proceedings today . Well, it will change proceedings completely. This is a completely different house of commons. This is very much the one wanted by Boris Johnson. He wants to put the paralysis, the political impasse, bitterness all behind this parliament, all behind the United Kingdom. He says he wants to unite the United Kingdom. He says its time to forget remain and leave. Those are old words that no longer should apply. So he wants all that rancor to be behind everybody and there is no doubt that with the 80seat majority concretely, but 87 plus in sinn fein do take their seats, he really got a very comfortable margin by which we expect this Withdrawal Agreement bill to pass i its second readi today, and this is very much a full steam ahead, boboris johns, who on the back of the queens speech talking about this Withdrawal Agreement bill and then also the money being plowed into the National Health service, infrastructure and australian immigration system really wants to be seen, particularly in the first 100 days, to be hitting the ground running. So while the rest of the United Kingdom is on its way on holiday and we are days away from what is a highly respected, whether you are religious or not, holiday, where things shut down until the fourth of january, people like us, the media, international, u. K. And all the parliamentarians and all the people of the staff in there are absolutely applying their minds this morning and it will culminate in a vote that we expect to result around 3 00 p. M. London time, 4 00 p. M. Paris time, with a resounding yes before the next stages in january. We understand they need three days that the government wants to allow for the next stages and very much then it would be successful with very few changes, it would then be implemented already or oven ready, as he likes to say, Boris Johnson, by mid january. Very much on track for the divorce on the 31st of january. That will be the end of phase one. Fasten your seatbelts. There is phase two to come. There are still those in westminster who dont want this text to be ever rubber stamped. Well, yes, there are those in westminster who dont want this to be rubber stamped at all. The problem is that they have not been elected in their majority by the people, british people. Amongst the most vocal, the Labour Party Leader who is particularly unhappy not just the resounding defeat he and his m. P. s have suffered last thursday in that journal election wanted and obtained but there is a clause amongst the concessions that were made back in october before Boris Johnson secured a deal with the e. U. , he actually they had to put in concessions about workers rights and those have been taken out as well as other rights, for example, child refugees to come over if they have family here from the rest of the e. U. , if they have family here in the u. K. , and the government response to that, well, look, we will deal with that in separate legislation. The Scottish National party also very cross, theyre unhappypy. The message is clear from them. We want a second independence referendum. There is no mandate in scotland for brexit. Thank you very much. If you are spending christmas here in france, youll most likely be stuck on a train stakes platform before you can open your gifts. The Public Sector strikes, which transport misery across the country over the last two weeks, are set to continue this yuletide. This after talks between the government and leading unions failed to lead to a ceasefire. The situation is slightly better for comommuters this fridayay. Half of high speed trains and a quarter of Regional Services are running and here in paris the tram network is pretty much back to normal, while six metro lines remain totally shut. James wilson reports. Some of france is striking transport workers might return to work over the holiday, but the dispute over pension reform is far from over. The collapse of talks between the government and unions this week means the strikes are set to continue into the newew year. Since the launch of the reform and despite opposititioni have been very clear, the government will not back down on the elimination of special retirement programs. However, i reiterate my desire nonbrutalnt this in a manner. President macrons attempt to raise the wage has infuriated many french people. They dont want to work longer for less money and union represents tiffs made clear they have yet to be given a reason to call off the strike. Always promises for everyone. Nothing concrete. The Prime Minister hasnt heard what the treaty is saying. So we have to face our responsibilities. The strikes have caused misery for millions of commuters who rely on p public transport get to work and go about their daily lives. S. Its also been a nightmare for many businesses who have seen trade plummet with both tourists and workers staying away from hard to reach city centers. However, despite the disruption polls s she majority of french people support the strike. From bulgaria to germany and right across italy, police have detained over 300 people with suspected links to a powerful mafia group. Those arrested face charges ranging from fraud to murder. We have the details. Among the 334 people arrested thursday at dawn for their alleged connection to the mafia, prosecutors say this suspect played a key role. The former right wing m. P. And senator allegedly enabled the powerful criminal group to contact politicians and influential professionals, lawyers, accountanants and publ officials so t they could carry ouout their crimes. A rogue policice colonel was al arrested. It was the biggest operation. There are about 250 pages of indictments, mafia associations, drug trafficking, murder, extortion, usury, money laundering. Assets. E seized the group is basesed in one italys poorest regions, but it has ininfiltrated wealthy regio across italy and beyond. Germany, switzerland, bulgaria becoming europes top cocaine broker. Thursdays arrests were the largest such operation since a cosanostra. N on the operation and trial that followed weakened that group, which is what prosecutors hope to do now with drangeta. The australian Prime Minister is heading home after deciding to cut short a contentious family holiday in the state of hawaii. Scott morrison has issued a rare apolology for jetting off w wn many of his fellow w countrymen are s suffering from the effect of wildfires. Criticism of the Prime Ministers absence has led to street protests and has even led to the creation of the hashtag where is skomo . The death of two volunteer firefighteters. We get the report. All week australians have been asking where is Scott Morrison facing a growing public backlala, he has issued a rare public apology for holidaying with hisis family in hahawaii w there is a record heat wave. As the number of deaths climbed on thursday withwo volunteteer firemen killed near sydney, morrisonon added that hehe woul as soon to australia as possible. People gathered outside his residence. His response wasnt good enough. We are living in a dangerous climate, and it is time for our Prime Minister to get out of the pockets of the coal and gas lobby groups and start thinking about the future of australians. Australia is heavily reliant on coalfired power plants. Scientists are making a link to climate change. This year brushfires began early, have laststed longer and been farar more intense. They destroyed more than 700 mes and fearly 3. 1 million hectarses of push land. It recorded its highest ever temperature on wednesday, with some parts of the country nearing 50 sells cruss. The heat wave i is expected too continue into the weekend. Moving on, the seven democrats hoping to push an already impeached donald trump from office at the polls next year have taken part in their latest tv showdown. The partys sixth debate took place in los angeles with candidates hammering home their individual views for 2 1 2 hours. His latest debate has cemented joe bidens lead. Live from the timing may not have been great, but the debate was substantive. A day before the holiday break and a day after Donald Trumps impeachment, Many Americans may not have been as focused on thursdays six democratic debates as the previous one. There was a unified consensus that donald trump should go, at least among the candidates onstage in los angeles. The nations voters remain divivided on the impeachmement. We need to restore the integrity of the presidency, of the office of the presidency. Certainly i disagree with trump on all of his policies, but with conservatives i think understand is that we cannot have a president with that temperament who is dishonoring the presidency of the uninited stateses. Q quickly pivoting away from trump, the candidates focused on issues such as climate change, free trade, taxing the wealthy and campaign finance. One of the nights sparring matches occurred when Elizabeth Warren called out Pete Buttigieg on his closed door winetasting with wealthy donors. Billionaires and wine caves should not pick the next president of the United States. Mr. Mayor, your response . Accordiding to forbes magazi i am the only person on this stage who is not a millionaire or billionaire. So if this is important. Ththis is the problem with issug purity tests you cannot yourself pass. Age and race were also issues in the debate with the three frontrunners being in their 70s and andrew yang saying it was an honor and a disappopointment toe the only candidate of color onstage. Iraqs top shiite cleric has called for early elections this friday. A ballot which he hopes will end months of tensions and political stalemate. A spokesperson says such a vote would be the quickest and most peaceful way out of the current protest crisis. Our team sent this report. Najaf is one of a rare city. At the end of the street is the sacred shrine of imam a lirks. He lives here behind these doors. The shiite cleric is 89 and many follow his guidelines when they take crucial decisions. Also in their everyday lives. He and his mother who live in the north of the city refer to him as father. He is like a shelter where we can find d refugege. Hehe protects us in all circumstances. We always follow his guidelines even when it comes to the most private and personal issues. The abudin family respects him so much that w when he call to fight the islamic group, his brother and father enrolled in an armed group. His father died in the fighting. His unite was attacked and a snipiper shot him in the head. If we had to do it all over again, we would still follow. His influence can be fatal for politicians. His callll to remove the government led the Prime Minister to step down. The cleshics representatives believe he is entitled to influence politics. He advises people over social, religious and political issues. When there is a political impasse in the country, he intervenes. He would give his opinion to politicians and to the public at large. There is some criticism of the cleric since he is so influence, they say he bears some responsibility in the state to date with ali sistani remains largest respected, one of iraqs most influential figures. Midnight mass has been canceled at one holy and Historic Site at the heart of paris this christmas. That ceremony wont be held in notre dame for the First Time Since the french revolution, following this years devaststating fire. France 24s correspondent has the details. The world watches as flames destroyed one of thehe greatest cathedrals in the world and the symbol of paris. There will be no Midnight Mass at notre dame this year for the first time in centuries. It is true the cathedral has always celebrated christmas since the revolution, the cathedral has always held a mass even during world war ii. Following the fire, the famed virgin of paris statue andnd christmas celebraration have be moved to a temporary new home pending restoration work due to continue for another fivive or x years. Christmas will be celebrated in exile at the Gothic Church in paris. Obviously there is a lot of sadness because we wont be in notre dame, but there is an enormousus amount of hope becau its only for a period of time. Through song and prayer, the Catholic Community are hoping to keep the Christmas Spirit alive. Its time for some Business News and here in france a landmark verdict has been handed down. A Parisian Court has found France Telecom and its executives guilty of moral harassment of employees. We talk more about this case. As legegal first in france the giant became the firirst of ththe company being found guilty of institutionalized harassment. Former c. E. O. Didier lombard rereceived a one Year Prison Sentence and was orderer to pay a fine. Guilty of institutionalized moral harassment. Thats the verdict in a closely watched case that dates back over a decade. The conviction is certainly a relief for the families of the victims. However, this judgment will not bring back our colleagues who took their lives as a result of the extremely violent management process that took place at the time. Starting in 2006, a wave of suicides took place at France Telecom, now known as orange. During this period, 19 employees killed themselves and a dozen more made attempts. Others fell into a deep depression. This all occurring when the company was trying to cut 22,000 jobs. Former c. E. O. Didier lombard and other executives were accused of putting in place a policy of systemic harassment. Lombard came under fire for his comments to managers to, quote, get people to leave one way or another, either through the window or the door. E has been given a partially suspended prison sentence and been ordered to pay a fine. His attorneys plan to appeal. The company has also been found guguilty and fined 75,000 euros. The e telecom gianant has s bee ordered to pay hundreds of thousands of euros more in damages. The conviction is a legal first in france and could pave the way for other companies to face similar charges. Staying with france, the countrys Competition Authority has slappeped a heavy fine on google. Its just the latest antitrust fine to hit google to the tune of 150 million euros. The internet giant is accused of abusing its dominant division in the ad market. They say the methods it used are difficult to understand and that the Company Applies them in an unequal way. Google says it will appeal the case. Ththe fine comes afteter they ad to pay closese to one billion eueuros t to french a authoriti settle a tax fraud investigatioion. Moving on, the British Government has named a new boss for the bank of england to lead Monetary Policy through brexit. The Central Banks former Deputy Governor has been chosen to replace mark carney who will step down on january 31. Johnson has confidence he will do an excellent job. The 60yearold had worked at the bank of england before taking the helm at the Financial Conduct Authority and is regarded as the citys momost experienced financial regulator. Theyre commenting on the appointment. He was the stand out candidate in a competitive field. Without question he is the right person to lead the bank. As we forge a new future outside the e. U. A and level up across r great country. What matters is that we appoint someone who can make the right decisions for british businesses and families and do so over the long term. Andrew bailey has the experience, the record, a and t character to doo j just that. With that lets demeck on the market. Here in europe, shares are rallying and the three major indices are in positive territory. The british pound recovered from an earlier fall and the final reading on the u. K. s Third Quarter growth was slightly better than an earlier estimate. In other Business News japans government has come up with another record budget for next year as it scurries to fund rising medical bills and pensionsns in the aging nation. It marks the eighth straight spending increase for the worlds third d largest economy. The budget for the next fiscaca yeyear starting in april is abo 940 billion, an increase of 1. 2 on ththe current year. Itit cld a add to the c country de b burdewhicich is a already e lalargest in the industrial wor standing at well over 200 of g. D. P. Another record budget for japan as the Prime Minister continues his abe economics to expand outpit. Government spending is set to hit nearly 103 trillion yen. Its an increase of 1. 2 over last year. One of the biggest areas of outlay, Social Security programs, faced with an aging population, spending for medical and pension payments are rising, making up 57 of the budget. Defense spending has hit a record high, as japan confronts military buildups in china and north korea. We need to enhance our defensibility to handle the security environment. At the same time we also need to have an appropriate control over defense expends turs. We will strive to make it more efficient. The government is counting on Economic Growth to boost tax revenues and help finance the public debt, one of the highest in the world. Its unveiled a stimulus plan as part of efforts to o get ththe economy back on track k after knocks from the u. S. China trade war and a failed tax hike in october. The finance mininistry is projecting the deficit will fall to 2. 9 against g. D. P. In 2020 compared to 3. 4 in 2019, but many economists say that forecast is too optimistic. Finally, for this business update, starbucks has agreed it pay thousands of dollars to its workers in new york city over its ilillegasisick leave policy. Find y made stafaff substitutes when they called in sick. The company has changed the policy and agreed to set up a Restitution Fund worth 176,000 for employees, a a sum that cou grow in exhausted. Last year starbucks adopted a nationwide policy in the United States granting employees one hour of sick leave for every 30 hours worked. That certainly is a more just system, i would say. Thank you very much. Its time now for a very quick break. Do stay with us here on france 24, our world News Coverage continues in a few moments time. [jazz playing] Kris Kuramitsu we have this idyllic image of 1950s america with families b buying homes inn thehe suburbs, theres jazz playaying on thehe stereo, technology is ushering in the new jet agage. But while that stereotytype was trtrue for some, that ararticulr American Dream was not available to everyone, nonot even some of those a artists and d designers whose wowork really visually define that t era. Alexandra lange not only are all of these artworks immediately recognizablble icons of postwar american art and design, but their Second Generation japanese american makers share a common bond beyond their ethnicity