Looks like crunch time for Macron vs the unions - will he succeed in labour reform this time?
Anyone taking bets?
What is it, anyway, with the French voting presidents in on the promise of taking on the unions and bringing in changes to the labour laws only to then spend their time blocking same a few months down the line?
Hi,
If he fails to win this , his presidency will fail. If his middle -class , middle income supporters see the bullyboy âpublic servantsâ, yet again blackmail the long suffering taxpayers (whose money, by the way, helps subsidise the unions) into allowing them to keep their outrageously inflated salaries , pensions and perks, they will lose heart. . He has the advantage of running things as president. The last time the government took on , among others, the rail workers, in 1995 , it was the prime minister JuppĂ© who had charge of the day to day running of the country, and the opposition to the unions.
Juppé was determined , and I remember seeing TV of armoured vehicles bulldozing tractors off the motorways. However , the president at that time was Chirac , who always kept clear of the fray, and when things got rough, lost what nerve he had, and overruled Juppé , who resigned ( to the great advantage of Bordeaux , which ,as mayor, he went on to make into a world-class city).
In my opinion Macronâs efforts are Franceâs last chance to avoid economic meltdown. By the way , donât believe all the puffs about how well the french economy is doing ; the country has been living on tick for over 30 years, and many of the generation who would be saddled with the debts in future , are themselves unemployed and part of the problem , or, if they are qualified , have quit the country to make good livings abroad -largely in the hated Anglo-Saxon economies.
If you doubt my claims , devote some time to studying the serious french financial press editorials.
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Macron has to succeed and I think the majority of the public support him albeit quietly.
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He may well succeedâŠI hope so.
Balance is what he is offering and balance is what France needs.
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Think the future of the EU depends on him sorting it out, Italy is once again without a government so no changes going to happen there.
Talking about SNCF I am a member of the British run SNCF society which was formed over 40 years ago and have recently changed their name to the French Railway Society due to the unpopularity of the SNCF brand.
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Yes Europe does seem to be looking to Macron to lead the EU to success.
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If he has the âbottleâ Maggie had, he will, was no great fan of hers, but She would not kowtow to a bully, displayed that more than once!
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She of course was the ultimate bully.
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She certainly âlost the plotâ in the end!
Will we get to the bottom of the Lockerby disaster?
One of my best friends lost her brother on that terrible day
and She must have known what was happening as diplomats
were taken off the flight leaving seats âŠsuddenly availableâŠthen
2 seats were offered to my friend s brother and his new bride. Instead
of a honey moon they flew to their death.
Dreadful night Barbara, I was living in SW Scotland at the time, a friend was a distribution engineer with the Electricity Company, he was called out to sort the system, to make the system safe for the emergency services, he was horrified for a long time. No I doubt if we will ever know.
How awful for you and your friend Barbara - very sorry to hear it. I have very mixed emotions about Pan Am 103 - I was at school in Lockerbie ( a bit before the disaster!) and the âeventâ also triggered my desire to go into aviation as a career. Strange old worldâŠ
(I know itâs got nothing to do with this thread but - thatâs how discussions goâŠ)
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Macron does not seem to be being unreasonable, those who have these very generous âbenifitsâ, will keep them, but they will not apply to new recruits, seems fair to me???
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Well I say good luck to Macron, he is young, dynamic, wants to change the âsame old orderâ . I say at least give the man a chance âŠ
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Second that Ann! 
Macron is, indeed, last chance of France.
You might disagree but in my private opinion, he should have an uncompromising attitude of Margaret Thatcher during the time of shutting down the majority of Britainâs coal mines in 1984.
I understand that in Great Britain you admire or hate her. However, persistence and consistency in implementing free-market reforms and in the fight against communism made it a policy that is difficult to find in history. It is not without reason that the Soviet media gave her the nickname âIron Ladyâ.
So, Macron should be like her- IronâŠman;)
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Mrs T went way too far IMO and it was her mission to destroy the unions, her treatment of cabinet colleagues wasnât great either.
But it was Scargillâs stated aim to overthrow the government (I attended a couple of left wing** rallies so I have heard him say this personally) - I donât blame her for a robust stance.
** not especially left wing myself - centerist mostly - but was young and interested in what was going on, having grown up in South Yorkshire.
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