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Macron’s pension plan sparks row

FRENCH president Emmanuel Macron has vowed to press ahead with unpopular pension reforms that will raise the country’s retirement age, despite massive protests and nationwide strikes.

During a news conference at a French- Spanish summit in Barcelona yesterday, Macron said that “we must do that reform”.

“We will do it with respect, in a spirit of dialogue but also determination and responsibility,” he added.

Workers in cities across France took to the streets to reject the proposed pension changes. It came on a day of nationwide strikes and protests seen as a major test for Macron’s presidency.

Thousands of people gathered for demonstrations in Paris, Marseille, Toulouse, Nantes, Lyon and other places as strikes severely disrupted transport, schools and other public services across the country.

French workers would have to work longer before receiving a pension under the new rules, with the nominal retirement age rising from 62 to 64 years old. In a country with an ageing population and growing life expectancy where everyone receives a state pension, Mr Macron’s government says the reform is the only way to keep the system solvent.

Unions argue the pension overhaul threatens hard- fought rights and propose a tax on the wealthy or more payroll contributions from employers to finance the pension system.

Most French people also oppose the reform, polls suggest.

Laurent Berger, head of the CFDT union, called the government’s plans an “unfair” reform and called on workers to “peacefully come to say they disagree”.