He was expected, he whose only words had been whispered by participants in private meetings. Two days after the rejection by nine votes of a motion of censure against the government, after the use of 49.3 to force through the pension reform and on the eve of a mobilization which promises to be very popular, Emmanuel Macron was questioned for about thirty minutes on TF1 and France 2. Right in his boots, he ruled out any withdrawal from the pension reform, despite the protest that is rising in the street, and charted a new course by betting on an “enlargement of the majority”.
On the pension reform
” It’s necessary (pension reform) comes into force by the end of the year, but we have to wait for the decision of the Constitutional Council”, explains Emmanuel Macron from the outset. And the Head of State to estimate that the text was voted in the National Assembly by “a vote of censure which failed”, after the use of 49.3 by the government.
“It does not please me, I would have preferred not to do it”, assures Emmanuel Macron, saying he is constrained by the economic reality. “There are not 36 solutions if we want the regime to be balanced”, justifies the tenant of the Elysée. “We could have said Pensions are loweredor increase the contributions of the active, but we have a problem of purchasing power”, he explains, assuming “to endorse the unpopularity” for “the general interest of the country”.
On the dispute
“That there are organized demonstrations is legitimate and I salute the spirit of responsibility of the unions, underlines the Head of State. Next to that, blockages, violence, they must be condemned. It is necessary to remove blockages, when they prevent normal activities. “We will not tolerate any overflow, it is also up to us to try to hear the legitimate anger which is not violence”, he notes.
Incidentally, he believes that “a lot of the anger that has been expressed is not about pensions. “If the French were totally angry, I probably wouldn’t have been re-elected a year ago,” he adds. And the President of the Republic to dare a perilous comparison: “When the United States lived what they lived in the Capitol (when Donald Trump activists stormed Congress), when Brazil lived what it lived (with thousands of supporters of Jair Bolsonaro ransacking places of power), (…) you have to say We respect, we listen (…), but we cannot accept either rebels or factions. »
Towards an “exceptional contribution” on profits
Wanting to reaffirm his priorities, Emmanuel Macron assures that he “will ask the government to be able to work on an exceptional contribution when there are exceptional profits so that the workers can benefit from them”. “We have large companies which are buying back their shares, they must distribute more to their employees”, he summarizes, while the left-wing opposition has been asking for a tax on super profits for several months. .
An increase in salaries in certain branches
Emmanuel Macron, who says the protests are not only directed against pension reform, wants to increase incomes in “branches where the minimum wage is below the legal minimum”. “Let’s go to work to find an answer in these first and second line professions which continue to have wages below the legal minimum”, explains the Head of State. Emmanuel Macron also wishes to “re-engage in discussions with the social partners” on several subjects such as professional wear and career.
On the sequel
Faced with the use of 49.3 and growing social anger, does Elisabeth Borne still have the confidence of the Head of State? “She has my confidence to lead this government team,” said the president. “ It decided, to leave no uncertainty, to engage the responsibility of the government (by 49.3). She has taken her responsibility: there is no alternative majority, ”he assures. And to say again, while the motion of censure against his Prime Minister was rejected by 9 votes: “I now wish that the Prime Minister can build the enlargement of the majority. »
The legislative process will be reviewed in order to have “shorter, clearer texts”. The Immigration bill, which was to pass in the Senate next week, will be “cut into shorter texts” and then arrive in Parliament “in the coming weeks”. The idea is to be able to pass projects more easily despite a relative majority. “We do not have the right, for our country, to stop and to stand still,” says Emmanuel Macron, rejecting the idea of no longer being able to carry out projects and reforms.