Given the stereotype of the French's disdain for those who speak in English, it's amusing to me the number of English speakers there is greater than the entire population of Australia.
Yes, France has a population of 66 million, whilst Australia has only 23 million. France is a developed, western country in close vicinity of the UK and therefore about 40% of the population can speak english. This is my logic behind it! :)
No source given, I see. The fact that Germany appears means that this isn't just native speakers, but some sort of explanation or intro would have helped.