An hour two hours even four hours at rush-hour - or rather during the rush hours: 5

An hour, two hours; even four hours at rush-hour - or rather during the rush hours: 5 to 10 in the morning; 4 till 9 in the evening. That's how long it is taking the traffic to clear. Improbable things are happening on the pavements. No alcohol or other substance is allowed on the bank premises without the permission of the senior line manager.Scott Hughes. Paris is a city of 3 million people that has had virtually no - or as the French are saying, "quasiment nul" - public transport of any kind for the past seven days.

From a supposed 20 per cent of buses and 10 per cent of Metro trains running last Friday, the numbers have dwindled to the point where there are no suburban trains, no Metro trains and a bare "1 per cent" of buses I was fortunate yesterday A taxi came my way, an empty one, that is. With no shortage of work and impossible road conditions a new camaraderie has grown up among the viciously competitive taxi drivers. "We don't believe in it." A spokesman claimed that they would just know from a person's behaviour if he or she were taking drugs, and dismissed the reliability of current screening procedures as "hit and miss".TSB: No "black-and-white" rules: should alcohol or drug abuse begin to affect an individual's work the matter is dealt with "sensitively" and with reference to line management. The matter "was not raised as an issue internally", said a spokesman.ICI: No specific policy on testing employees for drug or alcohol abuse, but the company does run a "sensible health" educational programme, which would seek to help workers to come to terms with an addiction.Glaxo: No testing, though questions are asked at pre-employment medicals regarding medication and alcohol consumption.Lloyds Bank: No policy, but a spokeman said that Lloyds is "aware that it is an issue" and is "looking into it".Select, model agency: No testing.

Staff are also issued with booklets on drug awareness. Citibank: No policy in the UK, though a spokeswoman said that there were probably more formal arrangements in the US.James Capel & Co, stockbrokers: No policy.SG Warburg, merchant bankers: No policy.Morgan Grenfell & Co, merchant bankers: No policy. Impairment "is and always has been treated as serious misconduct", and the misuse of legal drugs is also prohibited. Shell: According to company literature, employees are expected "to be fit and ready to carry out their work duties at all times without any risk of their performance being impaired or their efficiency reduced by drugs or alcohol". The Act compels transport employers to test employees for drug and alcohol use; accordingly BR introduced a computer-selected screening process, which tests 5 per cent of workers randomly each year. British Rail: BR has had a strict policy against employees' consumption of drugs and alcohol since last century, but the 1992 Transport and Works Act made it a criminal offence to be intoxicated in charge of a vehicle. We are all going out feet first," said John Cooper, 56, who bought The Stores with his wife 15 years ago.New Radnor has not always had such a tranquil reputation.

In 1401, Owain Glyndwr captured and beheaded a garrison of 60 men at the castle, which was later destroyed by Roundheads during the Civil War.At one time New Radnor boasted its own MP and was the county town of Radnorshire, with a weekly market and five annual fairs.The railway arrived in 1875 to provide a seaside link with Aberystwyth, but the last train left in 1951 and a bypass has kept traffic at bay since 1979.Rose Garibo, 39, said: "There is very little vandalism and the crime rate is low, although, having said that, the school was broken into last night and they took all the food from the freezer.". But the grocery and butcher's store remains, along with a post office, hairdresser's salon - and paragliding shop."It's wonderful I would never live anywhere else. The back-bench MP, Sir Teddy Taylor, said yesterday: "It seems appalling that the non-elected European Court is telling the British government not only how to operate on terrorism, but how not to.The Sinn Fein president, Gerry Adams, was excluded until this year, but the Home Office dropped the order after he began a challenge before the Luxembourg court.Although the Home Office insists its exclusion orders have all been justifiable, until now it has never had to demonstrate that there had been independent backing for its judgment that a person "is or has been concerned in the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism connected with the affairs of Northern Ireland".Stephen Grosz, solicitor for the former republican activist John Gallagher, who brought yesterday's case, said there were few safeguards against abuse of exclusion orders, but this would help.A spokesman for the Home Office emphasised that the Act would remain in force. STEPHEN WARD Legal Affairs Correspondent Britain's Prevention of Terrorism Act, used to exclude suspected Irish terrorists from the country, is in breach of European Union law, the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg ruled yesterday.The Government faces claims for thousands of pounds in compensation from suspected terrorists who argue they were excluded under the unlawful procedure, and challenges to bans from the 36 people currently excluded from Britain under the Act.The move will give fresh impetus to government plans to use the forthcoming Inter- Governmental Conference on the EU's future to seek curbs on the powers of the European Court. Violence has no place at the table of democracy, and no role in the future of this land'.". He said in one of his speeches: "You, the vast majority - Protestant and Catholic alike - must not allow the ship of peace to sink on the rock of old habits and hard grudges."You must say to those who still want to use violence for political objectives 'You are the past, your day is over. General John de Chastelain, 58, has been Canadian Defence Chief of Staff since 1989.

Harri Holkeri, also 58, was Prime Minister of Finland between 1987 and 1991.The success of the visit means that Mr Clinton is likely to take an even closer interest in the process in future. Moving from ceasefire to peace requires dialogue."This view may colour the attitude of George Mitchell, the President's political ally and close friend, who is to head the international body considering the issue of the de-commissioning of paramilitary weaponry.The two latest appointments to the body have been confirmed. The President several times pledged continuing economic support for Northern Ireland, something guaranteed to please all sides.His words, and his care to stage walkabouts on both the Falls and Shankill Roads, were signs of the White House anxiety to strike a balanced approach in its interventions in the peace process.But although great care was taken not to offend any section, it is clear that the US administration leans more towards Dublin's view of the peace process than to London's, agreeing with Dublin that more push is needed towards an all-inclusive process.He illustrated this when he declared: "Engaging in honest dialogue is not an act of surrender but an act of strength and common sense. Mr Hume accompanied Mr Clinton throughout his appearances in the city centre.There was something too in the visit for Unionists, with Mr Clinton spending time in a local enterprise unit in predominantly Protestant east Belfast, accompanied for part of the time by Peter Robinson, of the Rev Ian Paisley's Democratic Party. Those who show courage to break with the past are entitled to their stake in the future."Those sentiments will also be welcomed by the Irish government, which has for many months been pressing London to accelerate the pace of the peace process and to move more quickly towards negotiations involving Sinn Fein.Nationalists were also cheered by the prominence given by the President to John Hume, leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party, during his visit to Londonderry. A spokesman said: "We have no idea for how long they will need the aircraft.". DAVID MCKITTRICK Ireland Correspondent President Clinton yesterday steered a middle course between the British government and Irish nationalists in his keynote addresses in Belfast and Londonderry.He pleased London by demanding an end to the so-called punishment beatings by paramilitary groups, and calling on organisations such as the IRA to acknowledge that the violence was over for good.But at the same time he pleased republicans by staging a public handshake on the Falls Road with Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams, and by declaring in his speech: "You must be willing to say those who renounce violence that they are entitled to be part of the democratic process.