Macron bid to create a diversion

RIOTS which saw police using tear gas to quell almost 10,000 ‘gilets jaunes’ – yellow vests – demonstrators in Paris have sputtered out.

Yet their legacy is a headache for President Emmanuel Macron.

Macron has been forced to watch as disgruntled people from the provinces, heavily reliant on diesel for agriculture and haulage, marched on the capital to protest at proposed fuel-tax hikes.

With approval ratings at a record low, his response has been to try to distract from domestic strife by engineering a diplomatic row over fishing rights.

In the past ten days two people have been killed and more than 600 injured in the fuel tax protests. Hundreds more have been arrested across France in what is the greatest challenge yet to Macron’s floundering leadership.