Macron announces when controversial pensions reform take effect

The pension reform in France will start to be implemented in the autumn. The French president said so Emmanuel Macron during an address to the nation.

“The evolutions envisaged by the pension reform will gradually come into force starting in the autumn,” Macron was quoted as saying by Agenzia Nova.

“Is this law accepted? Manifestly not", acknowledged the head of state, explaining that the "lessons" of protests and tensions must be learned. “A consensus has not been found. I regret it and we must take all our share of responsibility,” said the head of state.

Macron then announced "three major construction sites" to relaunch his second term at the helm of the country. “First of all the construction site. In the face of unemployment, we have unprecedented and incredible results. Thanks to the transformations launched, more than 1.700.000 jobs have been created in the last six years”, added the president. In this context, Macron announced the "reform of the professional high school". The second construction site concerns that of "justice and republican and democratic order", announced Macron. The president unveiled the goal of hiring "more than 10 magistrates and agents". To this will be added 200 new gendarmerie brigades in the countryside. The president declared that more concrete announcements will be made "from the month of May" regarding the fight against "all forms of delinquency". Macron also wants to strengthen control of illegal immigration by "better integrating" foreigners arriving in France.

The third and final construction site concerns "progress to live better". “Teachers will be better paid, students will be accompanied more in French and mathematics, as well as with homework, and they will play more sports at school,” Macron said. The head of state also mentioned the health dossier. "By the end of next year, we should have decongested all of our emergency rooms," the president said. For the 10 million French "who live in the most difficult neighbourhoods, in the most difficult rural areas or in our overseas territories" the State will find "concrete solutions to improve daily life". Finally, Macron declared that he will give himself "100 days", until July 14, to make an "initial assessment" of these three "construction sites" launched with today's speech.

The reactions of the opposition and the unions to President Emmanuel Macron's speech to the nation were immediate. The leader of the National Assembly, Marine Le Pen, said on Twitter that the head of state has decided to "turn away" and "ignore the suffering of the French". Also on the social network, the leader of France Insoumise, Jean Luc Melenchon, argued that the "people in France do not let two years of freedom be stolen", referring to the pension reform which provides for the raising of the retirement age from 62 to 64 years. The "tribune" of the radical left then expressed his appreciation for the initiative launched against the head of state, who invited all French people to ring pots and pans in the windows during the speech. The union secretary of the French Democratic Confederation of Labor (Cfdt), Laurent Berger, spoke to the microphones of the television station "BfmTv" underlining "a sort of void" in the president's speech.