By Luis Miguel Pascual
Paris (EFE).- Less than a month into his tenure as head of the French government, French President Emmanuel Macron’s supporter, Sébastien Lecornu, endured the third day of street protests on Thursday.
A notable decline in participation marked the protests, although Lecornu received a visible threat from the Socialists, whose support Macron needs to push through the 2026 budget.
The number of demonstrators in over 250 cities decreased significantly compared to Sep. 18, when unions claimed around one million people participated, a figure that police halved.
On Thursday, the unions claimed that 600,000 people took to the streets, slightly more than half the number who had participated two weeks ago.
Meanwhile, the authorities estimated the number at 195,000, compared to half a million at the last protest.
The number of strikers decreased, public services such as schools and hospitals, as well as transportation, which operated almost normally in contrast to the near-paralysis of 15 days ago.
The unions acknowledged that workers cannot afford to lose three days’ wages and that many have not gone on strike out of a sense of responsibility for their duties.
However, they consider that the message from the streets remains “powerful,” demanding a change in political direction, increased social spending, and the abandonment of the 2023 pension reform that raised the minimum retirement age by two years to 64.
“If he does not respond to our demands, he will swell the overflowing cemetery of prime ministers,” said CGT leader Sophie Binet. She added that Lecornu “holds the record for having suffered three days of mobilization in less than a month.”
Like the other union leaders, she rejected the measures that the prime minister leaked about his new budget, and in her opinion, these measures do not align with their demands.
On Thursday, Lecornu presented the first draft of his budget to the High Council of Public Finance. He proposed lowering taxes for couples earning the minimum wage and reducing the taxation of overtime, an announcement that came a day after Lecornu announced a revaluation of the women’s pensions.
These measures have not convinced the unions or the Socialist Party, whose 60 deputies he needs to pass the budget and protect himself from the imminent no-confidence vote announced by the leftist France Insoumise of Jean-Luc Mélenchon.
“If nothing changes, we are inclined to vote for the motion of no confidence,” said Socialist Party leader Olivier Faure, who nevertheless opted to give the prime minister “an opportunity” to convince them.
The prime minister is scheduled to meet with the Socialist Party on Friday. The meeting will take place shortly after he meets with representatives of Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally party, as part of an intense round of negotiations with various parties.
Meanwhile, the head of government is reaching out to potential cabinet members, three weeks after his appointment, in an effort to form a new government that French media consider will be continuous and compact.
The announcement could come this weekend, before the National Assembly begins its work on Monday, when Lecornu will reveal the main lines of his project to the deputies in a general policy speech later in the week.
His chances of survival largely depend on the tone of the speech and the negotiations with the parties, especially the socialists.
“If things do not change much, we are heading for a motion of no confidence that will lead to a dissolution of the chambers,” Faure highlighted.
The decision lies with Macron, who has been unable to find a way out of the political impasse that has plagued the country since the July 2024 legislative elections, leaving the chamber divided into three irreconcilable blocs. EFE
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