Did you miss the news this early morning? We’ve put together a recap to help you see things more clearly.
The unions have once again scored points in the street against the pension reform. Across France, a record number of opponents marched on Tuesday to try to roll back the government, particularly on the postponement of the legal retirement age to 64. According to the unions, more than 2.5 million people marched in the country. The Ministry of the Interior counted half as many, but still more than 1.27 million. It is therefore more than the first mobilization of January 19, and even more than the historic record of 2010, at the height of the challenge against a previous pension reform. On the strength of this new success, the eight main French unions have decided to extend the movement by calling for two new dates of mobilization, Tuesday 7 and Saturday 11 February.
As anger continues to mount against the pension reform, the government will embark on another explosive file this Wednesday. The immigration bill, criticized both on the left and on the right, will indeed be presented to the Council of Ministers. The text provides for a series of measures to facilitate expulsions, a reform of the right to asylum and an integration component, in particular the regularization of undocumented workers in “shortage jobs” (catering, construction, etc.) where employers are struggling to to hire. The bill is carried by the Minister of the Interior Gérald Darmanin, for its security component, and that of Labour, Olivier Dussopt, for the more economic and social part.
Three years after Brexit, the UK is in crisis. According to the latest IMF forecasts, this year will be the only major economy to suffer a recession, with a contraction of 0.6% of its GDP. Above all, inflation, which has reached 10.5%, is pushing many Britons into poverty. Result: teachers, railway workers, civil servants … are preparing this Wednesday for a new day of massive strikes, the largest in a decade. Up to half a million people could strike on the eve of the date marking the first hundred days of the government of Rishi Sunak. The disruptions will be strong both in transport and schools and will ultimately affect the entire economy through a domino effect. The strikers are asking for wages in line with the rise in prices.