Terminations failed: pension reform decided in France

The French opposition has failed to overthrow the government by two votes of no confidence and prevent the controversial pension reform. After months of disagreement, reform in France is now officially a foregone conclusion. In the first parliamentary vote on Monday evening, 278 MPs voted against confidence in the center government. However, the absolute majority of 287 votes was not achieved. Only 94 deputies voted in favor of the second no-confidence motion tabled by the right-wing nationalists.

The reform to gradually raise the retirement age from 62 to 64 is considered one of the most important projects of President Emmanuel Macron. In France, there have been repeated strikes and violent protests against the reform for weeks.

The retirement age in France is currently 62 years. In fact, retirement starts later on average: those who have not paid in long enough to receive a full pension continue to work longer. At the age of 67, there will then be a pension without deductions, regardless of the payment period – the government wants to maintain this, even if the number of payment years required for a full pension increases faster. She wants to increase the monthly minimum pension to around 1,200 euros. With the reform, the cabinet wants to close an imminent gap in the pension fund.

Last Thursday, after weeks of heated debates, the two chambers of parliament were finally set to vote on the reform. The Senate approved the project. However, the green light from the National Assembly, where the government does not have an absolute majority, seemed uncertain. She therefore decided at the last minute to abolish the reform with a special article in the constitution without a vote by the National Assembly. The opposition then tabled two no-confidence motions. The anger of many French people at the government’s actions, which were criticized as undemocratic, erupted into spontaneous and sometimes violent protests.

Left-wing and right-wing nationalists are expected to appeal to the Constitutional Council on Tuesday in the dispute over the reform. They want to have the government’s actions checked there, which has shortened the debate time for the reform in parliament through an accelerated procedure and has included the reform in a budget text. In addition, the left wants to try to prevent the reform with a referendum. Further strikes and protests against the reform are already planned for Thursday. (sda/dpa)