A last minute reprieve for a French tradition

Car licence plates - yes believe it or not they've been making the headlines in France - are something of a national institution here.

And the good news for those who like to see traditions maintained, is that the minister of the interior Michèle Alliot-Marie has backtracked on a decision to get rid of the number signifying from which department or administrative part of France a car comes.

Let me explain.

France is divided into 100 departments - four of them are overseas and the rest of them in what is called Metropolitan France. They're all numbered - more or less alphabetically (if that makes sense) starting with 01 for Ain all the way to 89 for Yonne.

After that it gets a little confusing because Territoire de Belfort is 90 and 91-95 were created in the 1960s when the area around Paris was rejigged.

Anyway for the longest time (well since 1950) car registration plates carried the number of the department in which the owner lived.

Over time it became a badge of pride for many. If you lived in Paris - then your car had 75 at the end of its licence plate. Nice (Alpes-Maritimes) - 06, Marseille (Bouches-du-Rhône) - 13, Lyon (Rhône) - 69 and so on and so forth. For a full list (should you be interested) click here.

Of course there was also something of a downside as some departments had a "reputation" and being seen with that particular number on your car was viewed by some as a mark of living in the "wrong" area.

On the whole though it was something the French loved. It distinguished them in a very visible way from each other.

Plus it it provided something of a simple pastime for many a bored child (and adult) sat in the back of the car on those seemingly interminable long-distance car journeys across France in the height of the holiday season.

Hours of fun (?) - we're talking pre-Gameboy days here - could be assured by spotting car registration plates and matching them to the correct department.

Just how much the French seemed to treasure the system became clear earlier this year when the government announced that as of January 1, 2009 it would change and any cars registered after that date would no longer carry licence plates identifying the department.

A new jumble of numbers and letters would replace the 59 for Lille (Nord) and 67 for Strasburg (Bas-Rhin) and all the rest.

The current system, the French were told, would reach saturation point within the next five to six years, so a change was necessary.

But the government had clearly underestimated the simple pleasure and apparent symbolism many French attached to the existing system.

Slowly but surely opposition grew. Regional councils said they wouldn't comply with the ruling, A national campaign started, "Jamais sans mon département", to put pressure on government ministers to change their minds.

Finally on Wednesday, Alliot-Marie announced a compromise that should please all sides and avoid a politically embarrassing stand-off.

And here it is. The rather confusing trade-off which will keep the number of the department on the licence plate.

As of January 1 all newly bought (March 1 for second-hand) vehicles will carry a registration composed of two letters - three numbers- two letters, something along the lines of AA-123-AA.

Also on the plate will be the EU flag and the "F" for France, but - and here's the compromise - there'll also be a space for the department number, although it won't actually form part of the car's registration.

The confusing bit? Well now drivers will be able to choose when they register their car, which department number actually appears on the plate.

Up until now, it has always been the department of residence, and every time car owners have moved house from one department to another, they have had to change the vehicle's registration number.

That'll now be a thing of the past and if you wish, you can keep hold of your old number for life (or as long as the car doens't conk out).

Plus of course it means that everyone will be free to "identify" themselves with wherever they wish.

So the opposition is happy, the government avoids a potentially humiliating impasse and children (and adults) can continue number spotting on those long journeys.

There's no date been fixed for a "complete changeover" to the new system, but the ministry of the interior reckons that within five years, 90 per cent of car owners will have the new plates.

Now where do I want to pretend I live?