PanamaTimes

Thursday, Jul 10, 2025

Democracy not: France's President Macron overrides parliament to pass retirement age bill

Democracy not: France's President Macron overrides parliament to pass retirement age bill

French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday resorted to using special constitutional powers. The pensions overhaul has been met with widespread protests and strikes across France. Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne announced to the assembly that the government would trigger Article 49.3 of the French constitution.
French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday resorted to using special constitutional powers to push his plan to raise the retirement age to 64 from 62 through the lower house of parliament.

The pensions overhaul has been met with widespread protests and strikes across France, with the issue seen as extremely contentious in the European nation.

The plans were passed in France's Senate on Thursday morning but had been due for a vote in the National Assembly (the lower house), where its approval was not guaranteed.

Instead, Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne announced to the assembly that the government would trigger Article 49.3 of the French constitution.

Lawmakers opposed to the reforms booed, chanted and shouted "resignation" as she spoke, Reuters reported. At one point the session was suspended for two minutes as politicians sang the national anthem too loudly for her to be heard.

Macron's Renaissance party argues reform of the pension system is necessary to sustain it long into the future. It has a projected annual deficit of 10 billion euros ($10.73 billion) each year between 2022 and 2032, according to France's Pensions Advisory Council. 

However, opinion polls suggest a majority of the public supported industrial action to oppose the changes, which include requiring workers to contribute to the system for 43 years to qualify for a full pension.

Strikes have taken place since the start of the year and intensified over the last week, hitting transport, schools, oil refineries, municipal workers and beyond. The action has resulted in trash building up in parts of Paris.

Opposition politicians are now likely to request a vote of no confidence in the government, which they must do by 3 p.m. Friday. Both Marine Le Pen's right-wing National Rally and the left-wing France Unbowed (La France Insoumise) have said they will do so.

However, lawmakers are unlikely to vote in a majority to dissolve the National Assembly and hold new elections, Renaud Foucart, a senior lecturer in economics at Lancaster University, told CNBC by phone.

The measure would then go to the constitutional court and most likely become law.

Foucart said the government had its eyes on the next national election, when Macron will not be running. The move means the "entire responsibility" for the reforms lies with him, rather than individual lawmakers who vote in favor of it.
Newsletter

Related Articles

PanamaTimes
0:00
0:00
Close
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
OpenAI Secures Multimillion-Dollar AI Contracts with Pentagon, India, and Grab
Brazilian Congress Rejects Lula's Proposed Tax Increase on Financial Transactions
Landslide in Bello, Colombia, Results in Multiple Casualties
Papa Johns pizza surge near the Pentagon tipped off social media before Trump's decisive Iran strike
Juncker Criticizes EU Inaction on Trump Tariffs
Minnesota Lawmaker Melissa Hortman and Husband Killed in Targeted Attack; Senator John Hoffman and Wife Injured
Wreck of $17 Billion San José Galleon Identified Off Colombia After 300 Years
Sole Survivor of Air India Crash Recounts Escape
Coinbase CEO Warns Bitcoin Could Supplant US Dollar Amid Mounting National Debt
UK and EU Reach Agreement on Gibraltar's Schengen Integration
Israeli Finance Minister Imposes Banking Penalties on Palestinians
U.S. Inflation Rises to 2.4% in May Amid Trade Tensions
Trump's Policies Prompt Decline in Chinese Student Enrollment in U.S.
Global Oceans Near Record Temperatures as CO₂ Levels Climb
Trump Announces U.S.-China Trade Deal Covering Rare Earths
Smuggled U.S. Fuel Funds Mexican Cartels Amid Crackdown
Protests Erupt in Los Angeles with Symbolic Flag Burning
Trump Administration Issues New Travel Ban Targeting 12 Countries
Man Group Mandates Full-Time Office Return for Quantitative Analysts
JPMorgan Warns Analysts Against Accepting Future-Dated Job Offers
Builder.ai Faces Legal Scrutiny Amid Financial Misreporting Allegations
Japan Grapples with Rice Shortage Amid Soaring Prices
Goldman Sachs Reduces Risk Exposure Amid Market Volatility
HSBC Chairman Mark Tucker to Return to AIA as Non-Executive Chair
Israel Confirms Arming Gaza Clan to Counter Hamas Influence
Judge Blocks Trump's Ban on International Students at Harvard
Trump Proposes Travel Ban on 'Uncontrolled' Countries
Panama Port Owner Balances US-China Pressures
Trump Administration Accused of Obstructing Deportation Cases
Trump’s China Strategy Remains a Geopolitical Puzzle
Eurozone Inflation Falls Below ECB Target to 1.9%
Call for a New Chapter in Globalisation Emerges
Blackstone and Rivals Diverge on Private Equity Strategy
Mayor’s Security Officer Implicated | Shocking New Details Emerge in NYC Kidnapping Case
Bangkok Ranked World's Top City for Remote Work in 2025
Denmark Increases Retirement Age to 70, Setting a European Precedent
Netanyahu Accuses Western Leaders of 'Emboldening Hamas'
Escalating Trade Tensions and Market Reactions
OnlyFans Reportedly in Talks for $8 Billion Sale
JBS Gains Shareholder Approval for U.S. Stock Listing
Booz Allen Hamilton to Cut 2,500 Jobs Amid Federal Spending Reductions
Trump Signs Executive Orders to Accelerate Nuclear Energy Development
Harvard Temporarily Blocks Trump Administration's International Student Ban
Nippon Steel Forms Partnership with U.S. Steel, Headquarters to Remain in Pittsburgh
Trump Expands Tariff Threats to Apple and Samsung Devices
Oracle and OpenAI Plan $40 Billion Nvidia Chip Purchase for AI Data Center
×