French MPs in knots over parliament tie-wearing
With debates over the rising cost of living and President Emmanuel Macron's allies short of an overall majority, what MPs are wearing may not seem the most burning issue in the French parliament.
But there have been impassioned discussions over the last days over that crucial question of a contemporary gentleman's fashion - should men have to wear ties in the chamber?
The issue has been sparked by the presence of a large contingent of deputies from the far-left France Unbowed (LFI) party who scored well in last month's parliamentary elections as part of the NUPES left-wing alliance.
Many male MPs from the LFI have chosen not to wear ties in parliament, leaving some right-wing counterparts aghast. Prominent LFI members of its younger generation, such as MP Adrien Quatennens, are almost always tie-less.
Right wing Republicans MP Eric Ciotti in a letter asked the parliament speaker to enforce an "obligation to wear a tie" in the chamber, in a bid to "to prevent certain deputies, in particular from LFI, from allowing themselves to wear more and more casual clothes in the chamber".
He described it as a "mark of respect due to our institutions and our compatriots".
But the LFI...