As French radicals march in Paris Sunday against the austerity policies of Socialist President Hollande, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, co-leader of the Left Party and last year’s Presidential election candidate for the radical Left Front, argues for a broad popular front of resistance. Interview by French Communist daily Humanite: Francois Hollande’s poll rating is very low. How do […]
Posts Tagged ‘France’
Amnesty for the bosses, none for the workers
May 3rd, 2013 by Tom Gill.France’s socialist government stands accused of ditching yet another pledge after it rejected last week a campaign for an amnesty of workers convicted for offences during strikes and other protest actions. The bill, which excludes those found guilty of physical violence, is ‘an act of justice towards all employees and trade unionists struggling to keep their […]
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Why Hollande’s plans on tax havens and dodgy politicians aren’t good enough
Apr 12th, 2013 by Tom Gill.French President Francois Hollande, facing a major popularity crisis following two major tax scandals involving a minister tasked with cracking down on tax evasion, and very senior aide who was treasurer for his presidential campaign, announced Wednesday a number of measures to address tax dodging and the dodgy financial dealings of politicians. But, as French left […]
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France’s L’Humanité: the secret of the radical daily’s success
Apr 11th, 2013 by Tom Gill.Interview with L’Humanité editorial director Patrick Apel-Muller by Vittorio Bonanni (translated by Tom Gill) Patrick Apel-Muller is a journalist of L’Humanité, he’s what in France is called the editorial director. A senior editor with some extra powers. So nearly a director, although formally this role is played by the Communist MEP Patrick Le Hyaric, but […]
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Jean-Luc Mélenchon: for an alternative to austerity in Europe
Feb 23rd, 2013 by Newsdesk.Jean-Luc Mélenchon was recently in London and spoke to a packed hall at UCL, comprising not only many members of the Front de Gauche living in London but quite a few Labour Party members and others from the British left. For those who weren’t there, and for those who were but whose understanding was not […]
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75% tax on rich rejected – a censure for François Hollande’s policies of pretence
Jan 10th, 2013 by Tom Gill.(translated from the original by Jacques Sapir) The measure considered to be one of the most emblematic of the promises of François Hollande on tax, the famous 75% rate for people on incomes of over €1 million, was rejected Saturday, December 29 by France’s Constitutional Council. The “Wise Men”of the council, to be clear, were […]
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French parliament backs permanent austerity, but it’s hardly a victory for Hollande
Oct 10th, 2012 by Tom Gill.Despite mass protests and demands for a referendum on the matter, in the end President Francois Hollande will get his EU budget treaty through parliament. On Tuesday, MPs passed the EU Fiscal Compact, or ‘permanent austerity treaty’ as critics describe it, by 477-70, with 21 abstentions. The Senate, which like the National Assembly, has a Socialist-led majority, […]
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France: 120 economists say no to the European budget treaty!
Oct 7th, 2012 by Tom Gill.In the coming week, France’s National Assembly, the lower house of parliament, will vote to ratify the European treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance , otherwise known by critics as the Permanent Austerity Treaty. Below in a statement published in Le Monde this week, 120 economists say why they reject it:
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Budget treaty an offensive by neoliberals & EU grab for power, French economists warn
Sep 24th, 2012 by Tom Gill.A collective of economists have weighed in against the EU Fiscal Compact Treaty, or golden budget rule, which French Socialist President Francois Hollande is laying before parliament next month in order to translate into the country’s laws.
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French feminists join campaign against EU Fiscal Compact
Sep 19th, 2012 by Tom Gill.French feminists have joined a growing campaign against a new EU treaty arguing that women would be in the frontline of a scary new world of ‘permanent austerity’ . The Fiscal Compact, set to be tabled for a vote in the National Assembly in October, would threaten women’s rights and ‘exacerbate gender inequalities’ as cuts […]
