Hi John,

We’d love everyone to make friends as soon as possible, and it seems that the mediator is working hard to achieve that. Here’s a rough translation of a Canal9 interview with Jacques Melly, the mediator on 19th August, just after the first mediation session:
JM: There is an understanding of the situation and confirmation that there is a real willingness to find a solution for this winter.
Canal9: Does that mean that we may be looking at a two-part solution, where we find a short-term solution for this year, and then spend more time looking for an ongoing solution?
JM: In French, whenever we talk about a list of issues we usually say that we are in the middle of the waters, but here we are still at the port, waiting for the ferry so we can start the crossing. In reality there is a whole series of issues to resolve and we hope that through this series of mediation sessions, we will be able to resolve as many as possible in as short a time as possible.
Although no timetable has been shared, there is apparently an agreed calendar of future meetings and so we’ll keep you posted when we hear any further news.