Alexandre Chauveau
This Wednesday evening, the Senate adopted article 7 of the pension reform, which provides for the decline of the legal retirement age to 64 years. If this symbolic step has been taken, the senators have until Sunday evening to debate the last 13 articles of the text, while a new day of mobilization is organized on Saturday by the inter-union.
The countdown begins. The senators have only four days left to examine the pension reform. Sunday midnight, it will be over. For the time being, the discussions are progressing well. This Wednesday evening, the upper house also adopted article 7, the most controversial of the text, which lowers the legal retirement age to 64 years. Unsurprisingly, it was thanks to the votes of the Republicans that this article was voted on. An important step in the review of the reform.
“An important step taken” for the government
The government did not mask its satisfaction this Wednesday evening at the end of the session, like Olivier Dussopt. “It is this article which allows us both to move towards the financial balance of the system, but also to finance the new rights. This is an important step taken”, rejoiced the Minister of Labor. A symbolic step since article 7 could not be debated in the Assembly. It was this Wednesday evening in the Senate, almost at midnight sharp, after an evening where the debates calmed down somewhat despite the dozens of amendments re-submitted by the left.
Bruno Retailleau thus justifies the use of Article 38 to speed up the discussion. “I don’t see why the articles of the regulations which allow a blockage would be used by the left, and the articles of the regulations which allow the unblocking would not be used by the right. I think that the obstruction is the parliament which is done hara-kiri”, underlined the senator LR at the microphone of Europe 1.
On the left, the communist Fabien Gay concedes defeat but wants to rely on the street and continue the fight. “This is certainly an important article, certainly the heart of the law, but there are 13 articles left. The battle is not over, because on Saturday there is still a social movement. The employees are on strike and that’s fine continue,” he said. Thirteen articles remain to be discussed in four days. The debates resume this Thursday morning at 10:30 a.m.