"The government is making fun of the French. Retirement at 1,200 euros, today we no longer know what it is (...). We learn that the number of French people concerned is becoming ridiculous", attacked Jean-Philippe Tanguy (RN).

"You lied to the French. How many people will benefit from this little + goodies +?", Launched the Insoumise Clémentine Autain.

The question came up repeatedly on the left and the LFI François Piquemal quoted the Marseille rapper SCH: "to get up for 1,200 euros is insulting".

"Throughout his campaign, the President of the Republic has committed to a minimum pension equal to 85% of the minimum wage for a full career, it is written in his profession of faith, there is no surprise, no deception", replied the Minister of Labor Olivier Dussopt.

"Thanks to this reform, 1.8 million of the current retirees will benefit from an increase in their pension".

And "we know that of the 800,000 new retirees each year, 200,000 will benefit from a larger pension because of this" measure, i.e. a revaluation for a "quarter of new retirees", he assured.

The government had promised a minimum of 1,200 euros per month in pension after a full career at minimum wage, without specifying the number of people concerned.

To receive 1,200 euros, it will be necessary to have validated all the required quarters (168 or 42 years old today, 172 or 43 years old by 2027) with remuneration at the level of the minimum wage.

A theoretical scenario which is only used to calculate this “contributory minimum” to which each retiree is entitled.

Those who have done “a lot of part-time work”, for example, will have “an increase but it will not necessarily reach 1,200 euros, even with a full career”, clarified Olivier Dussopt.

It will therefore not be a minimum of 1,200 euros for everyone, but all small pensions will benefit from a boost, between 25 and 100 euros per month depending on the case.

The 1,200 euros displayed actually correspond to 85% of the net Smic – currently 1,353 euros per month, but which will probably be revalued during the year to keep up with inflation.

© 2023 AFP