Macron’s bid to raise retirement age approved by constitutional court despite strikes and protests 

French President Emmanuel Macron’s flagship pension reform passed a crucial constitutional test on Friday and can now be implemented despite fierce strikes and protests by millions against the decision to raise the retirement age.

The legislation, which raises the age to raise a full pension from 64 to 64, is deeply unpopular in France and has caused massive disruption.

But in what will come as a great relief to Macron and his government, the country’s Constitutional Council, or highest constitutional court, has given the green light.

According to French media, protesters are marching into the center of Paris, with 3,000 people already gathered outside City Hall at 5pm BST.

The Council said the government’s actions were in line with the constitution and approved raising the statutory retirement age.

Protesters gathered outside Paris City Hall, holding banners reading ‘climate of anger’ and ‘no end to strikes until reform is withdrawn’ as the verdict of the Constitutional Council was announced

Protesters gather in front of Paris City Hall awaiting the results of a French Constitutional Council ruling on pension reforms

Demonstrators light red torches in front of the Olympic rings in Hotel De Ville on Friday night

Macron and his government hope such a result will discourage further union-led protests, which have sometimes turned violent.

But the nation is bracing for further riots tonight and French police are standing by.

Protests have broken out almost weekly since January, as around two in three people oppose the highly unpopular reform. Council approval will bring France closer to its EU neighbours.

French trade unions on Friday turned down Macron’s invitation to attend talks with the government on the reforms next week.

“The country must keep moving forward, working and meeting the challenges that lie ahead,” Macron said earlier this week.

But hardline unions and the opposition have warned they will not back down and have urged Macron not to declare it.

Protesters gathered outside Paris City Hall, holding banners reading “climate of anger” and “no end to strikes until reform is withdrawn” as the Constitutional Council’s verdict was announced.

Protesters gather outside Paris City Hall, Friday, April 14, 2023 in Paris

Protesters carried large banners with slogans calling for strikes and a rollback of reform

Separately, the Constitutional Council rejected an opposition proposal to organize a citizens’ referendum on the pension reform.

The opposition has resubmitted a proposal for a referendum to be assessed by the Council in early May.

Political observers say widespread dissatisfaction with government reform could have longer-term consequences, including a possible boost to the far right.

Images online show how large numbers of people in French cities are already protesting against the ruling, while hundreds of people walk the streets of Paris.

The move is likely to infuriate unions and other opponents of the pension plan, including protesters who gathered in towns and cities across France on Friday night when the decision was announced.

The council rejected some other measures in the pension law, but the increased age was central to Mr Macron’s plan and was the target of protesters’ anger.

Macron can pass the bill within 15 days.

After the ruling was announced, French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne said: “The Constitutional Council has determined… that the reform is in line with our constitution. The text is coming to the end of its democratic process. Tonight there is no winner, no loser.’

Members of the Macron government, including Labor Minister Olivier Dussopt, have congratulated the president on the success of the reforms.

Dussopt said the law would come into force on September 1, as initially planned, denying requests from unions not to enact the law despite huge public opposition.

Opinion polls show a large majority against the reform, as well as the fact that the government invoked Article 49.3 of the constitution, which allowed it to pass the bill without a final vote in parliament that it may have lost.

The leader of the opposition socialist party, Olivier Faure, said: “The Constitutional Council only ruled on the lawfulness of the law, its approval does not mean that this is a fair law… The French have been fighting this reform for months, they will be disappointed and the struggle will take on other forms.’

And Jean-Luc Melenchon, leader of the far-left party La France Insoumise, added: “The decision of the Constitutional Council shows that it is more attentive to the needs of the presidential monarchy than to those of the sovereign people. The battle continues and must join forces.’

Political observers say widespread dissatisfaction with government reform could have longer-term consequences, including a possible boost to the far right.

Far-right leader Marine Le Pen wrote on Twitter that “the political fate of the pension reform is not sealed,” urging voters to support those who oppose it in the next election so they can scrap it.

Macron says the French must work longer or the pension budget will shoot billions of euros into the red every year by the end of the decade.

But the pension system is a cornerstone of France’s cherished social protection model and unions say the money could be found elsewhere, including by taxing the rich more heavily.

While the focus is on the retirement age of 62, only 36 percent of French workers retire at that age and another 36 percent retire older due to requirements to pay into the system for at least 42 years to to be entitled to a pension. full pension.

That means the normal retirement age for a French worker who started work at age 22 was 64.5, slightly above the European Union average of 64.3, according to OECD figures based on 2020 data .

This is a breaking news story and will be updated.