French protests

[Peevemor]

Out of interest, have the protests that are taking place in France this weekend been given much msm coverage in the UK?

[Moulin Yarns]

The fuel protests are on the BBC. 1 dead and 200 injured.

[Mibbes Aye]

Out of interest, have the protests that are taking place in France this weekend been given much msm coverage in the UK?

Online the UK version of the Guardian has it tucked quite far down, it's higher up on the Independent but still not prominent. The Telegraph has it relatively high and is running a photo alongside the link to the story.

On the BBC news channel it's not featuring in the headlines (various angles on Brexit and the California wildfires) though I expect they will get to it during their broadcast.

[Moulin Yarns]

Online the UK version of the Guardian has it tucked quite far down, it's higher up on the Independent but still not prominent. The Telegraph has it relatively high and is running a photo alongside the link to the story.

On the BBC news channel it's not featuring in the headlines (various angles on Brexit and the California wildfires) though I expect they will get to it during their broadcast.

BBC didn't mention it on the lunchtime news.

[Peevemor]

It's been fairly impressive. Almost 300k people (government estimate) participated in 1,500 manifestations throughout France. This all started from one guy (a Breton, of course) posting on Facebook. Every effort has been made to keep it non party political, though obviously it's very much anti Macron.

[pollution]

It's been fairly impressive. Almost 300k people (government estimate) participated in 1,500 manifestations throughout France. This all started from one guy (a Breton, of course) posting on Facebook. Every effort has been made to keep it non party political, though obviously it's very much anti Macron.


I used to admire the way French voters make their government work for them unlike here where it is the reverse.

Now I am not sure that there is as much support from the French people for rioters. At least from the coverage that we see here.

The benefits that the SNCF ex employees have/had are remarkable. The civil service rewards are surely unsustainable. Just a few things i have seen.

I am not saying they are right or wrong, it is not my country to criticise.

[Peevemor]

Well there you have it. Macron's just announced a 100€ increase in the minimum wage (at no extra cost to employers) and overtime payments will be tax/charge free - both starting in January. There was to be an extra tax on pensions which has also been scrapped for those getting less than 2000€ per month. It was already announced last week that the increase in fuel tax has been scrapped. He also says that measures will be taken to ensure people and businesses who make money in France will pay tax in France.

He also admitted that he had been wrong on certain issues.

While these measures don't answer all the complaints, for me it can only be seen as a victory for the protesters.

We'll wait and see what happens now...

[Mibbes Aye]

Well there you have it. Macron's just announced a 100€ increase in the minimum wage (at no extra cost to employers) and overtime payments will be tax/charge free - both starting in January. There was to be an extra tax on pensions which has also been scrapped for those getting less than 2000€ per month. It was already announced last week that the increase in fuel tax has been scrapped. He also says that measures will be taken to ensure people and businesses who make money in France will pay tax in France.

He also admitted that he had been wrong on certain issues.

While these measures don't answer all the complaints, for me it can only be seen as a victory for the protesters.

We'll wait and see what happens now...

IIRC civil unrest in France used to involve setting fire to dead sheep and using them to block the motorways and the like. This seems a bit lame by comparison :greengrin

Having said that, I recall being on a school trip to France and one day we were wandering around central Paris. We were advised that it might be a bit busy because nurses were planning a march to protest about low pay and bad conditions. We found ourselves into a side street and there were literally dozens of CRS standing by their vans, all geared up and looking ready to hand out a stiff kick-in!

[Hibrandenburg]

The Brits could learn a lot from the French about getting their government to work for them.

[Jack]

The Brits could learn a lot from the French about getting their government to work for them.

Pretty much just said that same on the Bounce.

While we are going through the biggest parliamentary cluster**** in living memory our collective action has been to put the kettle on and we'll have a nice cup of tea!