Executive and unions tackle a crucial week for pension reform on Monday, the latter planning two days of action to try to influence the debates which begin in plenary at the Assembly, with a weakened lead minister in charge.
Without calling into question the cardinal measure of the reform, the increase in the retirement age from 62 to 64, Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne took a step on Sunday towards the LR group, whose votes are essential for vote for reform.
“We are going to move by extending the long career system to those who started working between the ages of 20 and 21”, which will allow them to “leave at 63”, she announced in the JDD.
A measure described as a “patch” by Laurent Berger, general secretary of the CFDT, the first French union. “Clearly, this is not the response to the massive mobilization, geographically and professionally diverse, which took place” on January 19 and 31, he said on France Inter.
The president of LR Eric Ciotti repeated to the Parisian on Saturday to wish to “vote a pension reform”, welcoming the “advances” obtained and pointing to the subject of long careers.
Ms. Borne also assured of her “confidence” in the Minister of Labor Olivier Dussopt, in the front line on this bill, at a time when he is weakened by suspicions of “favoritism” in the awarding of a public contract when he was mayor of Annonay.
On the side of the unions, the determination does not weaken. Two new days of action are planned, on Tuesday 7 and Saturday 11 February, after two days of strikes and demonstrations, on 19 and 31 January, the last of which (with 1.27 million demonstrators according to the police and more than 2 5 million according to the intersyndicale) exceeded the participation record of 2010.
It is a week of mobilization, “with two dates and a high point”, the parades of Saturday 11, to which “we must come massively”, said Laurent Berger on Sunday.
“We combined a weekday and a Saturday, we will see on all two days, despite this period of school holidays” (the February holidays), said Friday the secretary general of the CGT, Philippe Martinez.
From a security source, the authorities expect Tuesday between 900,000 and 1.1 million people, including 70,000 maximum in Paris, where the procession will parade from the Place de l’Opéra to Bastille. An inter-union will be held at the Labor Exchange in Paris in the evening.
The strikes are once again expected to particularly affect the energy, refinery and rail transport sectors, which have planned to stop work on February 7 and 8. Traffic will be “severely disrupted” on Tuesday for trains, TGV and TER, in metros and RERs, said RATP and SNCF. At Orly, one in five flights will be canceled.
But the time has not yet come to block the economy, a strategy decried by the reformist unions, who intend to keep public opinion on their side with “friendly, respectful” demonstrations.
Laurent Berger says he has “very constructive exchanges with deputies of the majority”. “Of course, it will be up to them to decide. They have to look in all the cities and constituencies where they are elected. When, for example, you are a deputy for Ain and there are 10,000 demonstrators in Bourg- en-Bresse, should that leave you totally indifferent?” he asked.
Elisabeth Borne, she “does not consider” the hypothesis of drawing as in the fall on 49.3. Government and majority would emerge “politically weakened”, admits MP Stéphanie Rist (Renaissance), rapporteur of the bill.
The battle which begins Monday afternoon in the hemicycle of the Palais Bourbon promises in any case to be an obstacle course for the government.
The LFI deputies will immediately defend a request for the rejection of the entire reform which worries the presidential camp. Then the RN group will carry its request for a referendum on the reform, which has little chance of being voted by the Assembly.
The deputies will then tackle the some 20,000 amendments tabled on the bill, including 13,000 by LFI. Government spokesman Olivier Véran criticized the “stupid and wicked obstruction” of Nupes on Sunday.
If the Assembly does not come to the end of the amendments by midnight February 17, the text may still pass to the Senate, due to the choice of the executive to resort to an amending budget from the Secu.
02/05/2023 19:53:39 – Paris (AFP) – © 2023 AFP
