French Prime Minister proposes to suspend controversial retirement age law until 2027 elections

French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu will propose to suspend a controversial plan to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64 in a bid to avoid an immediate collapse of his fragile minority government.

Lecornu said in a speech on Tuesday National Assembly This law is a major policy of the French President Emmanuel MacronIt will be put on hold until after the next presidential election in 2027.

socialist PartyOne who is not part of the government had demanded the repeal of the law

Lecornu faces two no-confidence motions from hard-left France Unbowed and the far-right national rally Parties. Neither party has enough seats to topple Lecornu’s government on their own, but if the Socialist Party joins them, the prime minister could be quickly ousted.

Lecornu first met with his Cabinet to discuss proposals for the 2026 budget, which needs to be approved by the end of the year.

With his government in crisis, France’s newly appointed prime minister will have to make concessions to his political opponents to avoid a no-confidence vote later this week, as the country struggles to end a long-running political crisis.

Opposite sides of the political spectrum have criticized Macron’s decision to reappoint Lecornu, France’s former defense minister and fourth prime minister in barely a year. Less than two years before the next presidential election, the National Rally is urging Macron to call another early parliamentary vote, while France Unbowed wants Macron to step down.

Despite massive protests, the pension changes were passed without a vote in Parliament in 2023, gradually raising the retirement age from 62 to 64. Opposition parties want to end it.

The Socialist Party has called for the law to be repealed and those calling for its suspension have found a high-profile ally. Nobel Prize-winning economist Philippe Aghion told broadcaster France 2 that it should be suspended until the next presidential election.

“I think we need to stop time now until the presidential election,” Aghion said, arguing that doing so would be “a way to calm things down” and “stopping it wouldn’t cost too much.”

Lecornu’s reappointment is widely seen as Macron’s last chance to consolidate his second term. His centrist camp does not have a majority in the National Assembly and he faces growing criticism within it too.

Macron’s surprise decision last year to dissolve the National Assembly resulted in a hung parliament and political paralysis.

Over the past year, Macron’s successive minority governments have collapsed rapidly, leaving France stuck in impasse while facing a rising poverty rate and a looming debt crisis that has worried markets and EU partners.