Macron’s Pension Reform May Get Nod From Opposition Republicans

(Bloomberg) --

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French President Emmanuel Macron’s plan to increase the retirement age to preserve the financial balance of the national pension system may get the backing of the Republican opposition party, its leader Eric Ciotti said.

An overhaul that would progressively raise the retirement age from 62 currently to 64 in 2032 may be acceptable, the president of the conservative party said in an interview published Sunday in Le Journal du Dimanche. Raising the smallest minimum pensions will be key to clinching a deal, Ciotti added.

The conditional support is good news for Macron’s party, which lost the outright majority in the lower house of Parliament last year. Macron had pushed for a new retirement age of 65 during the election campaign, though the government has since signaled willingness to compromise.

Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne argued last week that threshold “is not a totem” for the government. She’s due to present details of the overhaul of the pay-as-you-go pension system Tuesday, with labor-union leaders saying they will strongly protest against any attempt to raise the retirement age.

Without any reform, the pension system will rack up €500 billion ($532 billion) in debt in the next 25 years as the population ages, Budget Minister Gabriel Attal said on France 3 television Sunday. He reiterated the government’s opposition to increase taxes or to reduce pensions to balance the system.

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