Bayrou faces backlash as pension talks stall

The French Prime Minister, François Bayrou, is facing increased pressure as his pension reform “conclave” concluded without an agreement after four months of closed-door negotiations. The lack of a deal has prompted Bayrou to call for a last-ditch effort to salvage an agreement by summoning trade unions and industry representatives. Yvan Ricordeau, a representative from one of France’s largest unions, the CFDT, stated, “There won’t be an agreement.” This comes after industry representatives refused to budge on key union demands, such as allowing earlier retirement for those with harsher working conditions or physically demanding jobs. Patrick Martin, president of Medef, reiterated the stance of industry representatives, saying that any changes should not increase costs for employers. Labor representatives have pushed for employers to contribute more to pension funds to help keep them solvent and potentially bring the retirement age back down to 62, after a law passed two years ago raised it to 64 for most workers. The talks gave Bayrou some leeway with the opposition, which refrained from voting to topple his minority government while the process was underway.

Bayrou’s political crossroads

However, with negotiations on the verge of collapse, the Socialists are signaling that their patience may have run out. Party leader Olivier Faure said that the Socialists will “move toward” censuring Bayrou’s government if the conclave fails and the prime minister does not allow lawmakers to propose their own changes to the pension reform, including a return to the previous minimum retirement age. Bayrou has already ruled out any alterations to France’s pension scheme that would put the system deeper into debt, arguing that this is incompatible with a return to the previous retirement age, a stance that opposition parties disagree with. Without the support of the Socialists, Bayrou risks suffering the same fate as his predecessor, Michel Barnier, whose government was brought down by a motion of no confidence put forward by the left and supported by the far right. Marine Le Pen’s National Rally and its allies have indicated they could move to topple Bayrou in the near future over other issues, such as energy policy. A vote on Prime Minister François Bayrou’s future will take place within 48 hours, putting his political survival in jeopardy as the pension reform dispute continues to divide the nation.