France's centre-right government stood defiantly by plans to make the 35-hour work week more flexible with the controversial prospect of longer hours, despite mass weekend protests. More than half a million people marched through 100 towns and cities on Saturday, according to the organisers -- an alliance of trade unions backed by the opposition Socialist Party. Police put the overall figure at 285,000. A bill that would enable private sector employees to opt for longer hours was expected to pass its first reading when it goes before the National Assembly Monday. In an interview with the newspaper Le Parisien, government...