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Protesters disrupted vehicle traffic at Paris’s main airport and police fired clouds of teargas in other French cities as people marched in their thousands in a new round of strikes and nationwide demonstrations Thursday, seeking to get President Emmanuel Macron to scrap pension reforms that have ignited a months-long firestorm of public anger. Follow FRANCE 24’s live blog for all the latest developments.
Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to take to the streets for the 11th day of protests against French pension reforms on Thursday. Walkouts are expected to impact the transport, education, health and energy sectors, with petrol shortages hitting particularly hard in Paris.
- The strikes come amid a deadlock in discussions between unions and the government. On Wednesday, union representatives met with French Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne for discussions that unions branded “a failure”.
- President Emmanuel Macron is on a state visit in China until Saturday. His office rejected responsibility for the failed talks and laid blame on the unions, notably the moderate CFDT, who it said “did not want to compromise” with the government.
- Public anger was further ignited after Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne used Article 49.3 – known as the “nuclear option” – to push pension reform through parliament without a vote on March 16, sparking widespread anger. Days later, the government narrowly survived two no-confidence votes.
- French President Emmanuel Macron insists the proposed changes, which include raising the retirement age from 62 to 64, are needed to reform a moribund system. But some of the government’s own experts have said the pension system is in relatively good shape and would likely return to a balanced budget even without reforms.
- Clashes between protesters and police were reported Thursday in cities around France including Nantes and Rennes.
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