Tense end to Macron’s ‘great national debate’

French president is met by nationalists in Corsica as he completes the last of 15 debates on nationwide tour

EMMANUEL MACRON completed an exhausting “great debate” tour of France yesterday with a tense visit to Corsica, where nationalists welcomed him by brandishing the island’s flags depicting a beheaded Moor.

Mr Macron has spent almost 100 hours since January listening and responding to the grievances of local mayors and officials in meetings around France. The exercise was part of an attempt to assuage the “yellow vest” revolt, which swelled from the provinces to Paris and snowballed into the worst crisis of his presidency.

Almost two million people have posted suggestions on issues on a dedicated website ranging from taxes to popular referendums, while a further million have taken part in almost 1,500 meetings across the country.

Mr Macron’s uncanny memory and stamina have won plaudits during the 15 debates he has taken part in with groups ranging from intellectuals in Paris to schoolchildren in Burgundy.

Even rivals offered grudging praise at his ability to go from macroeconomics to the minutiae of local politics, on everything from “bears in the Pyrenees to toxins in Tampax”, to quote one observer cited by Le Figaro.

As a result his poll ratings have started to recover after hitting an alltime low amid claims he was an arrogant and out-of-touch “president of the rich”. However, with the debate period now coming to a close, all eyes are on whether he can translate the unprecedented exercise in “participative democracy” into workable measures that will satisfy the irascible Gilets Jaunes and stamp out violent protests in Paris and other big cities.

Edouard Philippe, his prime minister, is due next Monday to outline the initial findings from the website contributions, which have been fed to an artificial intelligence application for keywords.

Mr Macron is then due to announce proposals on the back of the debates later this month. Some commentators say these could be radical.

Mr Macron did not pick the easiest of venues to round off his marathon debate tour as he was met by nationalists waving the Corsican flag, which depicts the black head of a beheaded pirate. They were furious that only the French and European flags were flying at the venue.

Less than half of the 350 mayors invited turned up while Corsica’s two top politicians, Gilles Simeoni, the nationalist head of Corsican regional government, and Jean-guy Talamoni, his more radical coalition partner in the Corsican assembly, boycotted the meeting in protest at Mr Macron’s refusal to cede to their demands. These include an amnesty for prisoners jailed for separatist violence, wider use of the Corsican language and measures to bar wealthy mainlanders from the local property market.

After a five-year lull, there are fears of renewed violence on the Mediterranean “island of beauty” after plastic explosives were found at tax offices in Bastia two days before Mr Macron’s visit and several second homes were blown up in recent weeks.

In an interview this week, Mr Macron said he would ”do everything to ensure that the page of violence has been turned for good”.