Paris (AFP)

Edouard Philippe said on Saturday "willing to withdraw", under certain conditions, the pivotal age of 64 from the pension reform project in a letter to the social partners, a gesture welcomed by the reformist unions when the opponents beat the pavement in most major cities in France.

"I am ready to withdraw from the bill the short-term measure that I had proposed, consisting of gradually converging from 2022 towards an equilibrium age of 64 years in 2027," said the Prime Minister in this letter sent. in the aftermath of bilateral negotiations with the unions in Matignon, while maintaining the principle of an age of balance in the reform.

This withdrawal is subject to conditions: the Prime Minister proposes that a "funding conference" be held with the social partners to "propose measures to achieve financial balance in 2027". In the absence of agreement of this conference by "the end of April 2020", the government will take by ordinance the measures necessary to reach this balance in 2027, the letter said.

The CFDT, the first union in France and favorable to the universal points system, had made a "red line" of this pivotal age prompting the French to leave at 64 in 2027 on pain of being inflicted a penalty.

As of the government's announcement, the central "welcomed the withdrawal of the pivotal age of the bill, withdrawal which marks the will to compromise" of the executive. It displays in a press release its desire to "continue the discussions in the proposed framework" and indicates that it will register "in the funding conference which it proposed in principle".

"The withdrawal of the pivotal age is a good thing that allows us to calmly discuss the balance," added the secretary general of Unsa, Laurent Escure. "This will allow us to move forward on the rest of the reform, to obtain compensation, guarantees, progress," he told AFP.

The outstretched hand of the government to reformist unions could crack the lines of opponents of the reform.

For the leader of the CGT Philippe Martinez, questioned Saturday at the head of the Parisian demonstration before the publication of the letter from the Prime Minister, "the pivotal age is a decoy" which "does not change anything in our opposition to the reform".

More measured, his FO counterpart, Yves Veyrier, observed that "if we are told that there is a decline in all or part of the pivotal age, it will be the product of mobilization".

On the 38th day of mobilization against the reform project, several tens of thousands of demonstrators - 150,000 according to the CGT - marched Saturday afternoon in the capital between Nation and Republic. In front of the good-natured union procession, several hundred demonstrators, some of whom were masked or masked, smashed shop windows, ransacked a bank, burned street furniture and threw projectiles at the police, which responded with gunfire tear gas. The police announced seven arrests at 5.30 p.m.

- "tomorrows that sing" -

In Toulouse in the morning, the police had counted 3,000 demonstrators (20,000 for the CGT). At least 2,000 people paraded in Rennes, with signs proclaiming "I will not trash the bins to eat at retirement" or "caregiver, I want a tomorrows that sing".

A thousand "yellow vests" and 2,000 to 3,000 demonstrators demonstrated in Marseille after a sharp episode of tension between the first and a member of the CGT order service.

In Nantes, black blocks attacked the prefecture with projectiles. They were repelled by the police who used tear gas canisters and water cannons, noted an AFP photographer.

The Prime Minister had reiterated Friday "the determination of the government" to present this project of universal pension system on January 24 in the Council of Ministers and to submit it to the examination in public session in the National Assembly from February 17 that it can be adopted before the summer.

The willingness to compromise displayed by the government on the pivotal age will not necessarily translate into an end to disruptions in transport because the CGT, FO and Solidaires are still demanding the outright withdrawal of the project.

SNCF traffic remains disrupted this weekend with 80% of TGVs, one TER out of two and 40% of Transiliens, while RATP mentions a "clear improvement" compared to the last weekends.

The intersyndicale, which called for continuing the movement with a "day of strike and interprofessional convergence" Tuesday, and "initiatives declined in all forms" Wednesday and Thursday, must meet Saturday after the demonstration.

The CGT called to maintain the blocking of fuel shipments from refineries until January 16 inclusive, and filed a notice of strike "renewable blocking" from 13 in two centers of the Banque de France which process more than a quarter of country notes.

The historic strike continued on Saturday at the Paris Opera, with the cancellation of the representation of the Barber of Seville, and at Radio France, which is in its 40th day of strike.

burs-mpf / cel / swi

© 2020 AFP