French President Emmanuel Macron addressed the French people last night. He briefly addressed the issue of pension reform and mentioned three major projects. He conceded that: “is this reform accepted? Obviously not,” acknowledged the head of state on the subject of pension reform, but “these changes were necessary to ensure retirement and produce more wealth,” he reaffirmed. “While the number of retirees is increasing, the answer could not be to lower pensions,” said Emmanuel Macron.
Emmanuel Macron’s speech is to try to relaunch his second five-year term twelve days after the enactment of the pension reform, in an atmosphere of persistent political and social crisis.
The French head of state thus highlights the “measures of justice and concrete improvements for those who have had long careers, those who have worked in the hardest jobs, or those who receive small pensions.” “Working progressively a little more, as all our European neighbors have done, also means producing more wealth for our country as a whole. This is what allows us to be stronger, to invest in our daily lives and in our future. We need it,” he insisted.
Macron said he heard the “anger” of the French, “no one can remain deaf”. He proposes to receive employers and unions “from tomorrow morning” to open “without any taboo”, “a series of negotiations”.
“I heard in the demonstrations an opposition to the pension reform but also a desire to find meaning in one’s work, to improve the conditions, to have careers that allow one to progress in life,” he continued.
Faced with this anger, the Head of State announced that he wanted to build a “new pact for life at work” in the coming weeks.
