Swiss

It said 1,000 customers were now using a G.fast connection, which can reach speeds of 500Mbps.

G.fast lets copper cables carry data at faster speeds than before.

In the UK, BT's Openreach has been trialling G.fast technology, but customers can not yet buy packages.

Openreach has been installing the fibre optic cables that facilitate superfast broadband across the UK, but has so far focused on connecting street cabinets rather than homes.

Manholes

Herve Falciani, 43, was on trial for leaking bank data that led to a worldwide wave of tax evasion probes against prominent clients with accounts in Switzerland.

Falciani, seen by some as a crucial whistleblower, had refused to travel from his native France to appear before the Swiss Federal Tribunal in Bellinzona in proceedings that began in October. France does not extradite its own citizens and Falciani appears unlikely to serve the sentence.

The aerial operation to scoop up water caught authorities responsible for Rousses Lake in the Jura mountains by surprise last Thursday. The helicopters also startled swimmers and fishermen enjoying the beaches of the lake in eastern France.

Christophe Mathez, deputy mayor of the Les Rousses commune, said officials had "no idea this operation would occur" — and that the Swiss neither requested authorization or nor warned before descending.