- Hundreds of thousands took to the streets across France on Thursday, protesting President Emmanuel Macron’s proposed budget cuts and testing new Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu in his first major political crisis.
- Teachers, train drivers, hospital staff, garbage collectors, and other workers joined the strikes. Transportation networks, including the Paris Metro, regional trains, and key highways, were heavily disrupted.
- Trade unions, including CGT and CFDT, demand scrapping austerity measures, more taxes on the wealthy, increased funding for public services, and the reversal of the controversial pension reform that raised the retirement age to 64.
- Unions claimed over 1 million participants nationwide, while government figures said 450,000 protesters. Around 80,000 police officers were deployed, and tear gas was used against demonstrators, with over 180 arrests reported.
- Lecornu faces his first major challenge just a week into office after his predecessor François Bayrou was ousted over a failed €44 billion austerity package.
France Faces Nationwide Demonstrations Against Austerity Measures
