“It’s money time,” sums up a socialist negotiator. A few hours before François Bayrou's general policy declaration, scheduled for this Tuesday, January 14 at 3 p.m., the socialists are maintaining pressure this Monday to obtain the immediate suspension of the pension reform, the main concession they are demanding as a condition in order to not to draw immediate censorship from the government.
In the afternoon, a delegation of socialist emissaries was received for two hours at the Ministry of Health. This Monday evening, from 6:30 p.m., a new meeting was organized in Matignon. It was to bring together, on the government side, Prime Minister François Bayrou, his ministers of Economy and Public Accounts, Éric Lombard and Amélie de Montchalin, and, on the socialist side, the boss of the PS Olivier Faure and the presidents of the parliamentary groups Boris Vallaud (Assembly) and Patrick Kanner (Senate).
Because it is indeed Matignon, in conjunction with the Élysée, who will ultimately decide on the fate of the much-maligned pension reform. “I believe that until the final printing of the speech, things can change,” said someone close to Faure. But we can't be blamed for not fighting until the last minute. If we emerge with the scalp of pension reform, the victory for the French will be major. » Otherwise, the 66 socialist deputies could vote for censure. “If after having sought all possible compromises, we have nothing, we will not sit quietly in our section of the Assembly,” threatens the socialist framework.
Before this final meeting, a two-hour interview was held this Tuesday afternoon, between 2 p.m. and 4 p.m., at the Ministry of Labor, avenue Duquesne. Around the table no fewer than five ministers: Éric Lombard (Economy), Amélie de Montchalin (Public Accounts), Catherine Vautrin (Health), Astrid Panosyan-Bouvet (Labor and Employment) and Charlotte Parmentier-Lecocq (Autonomy and Disability) faces a delegation of four deputies and four senators. At Matignon, it is explained that the points of the finance bill (PLF) and the Social Security financing bill (PLFSS) were reviewed but that there was no question of arbitration on pension reform. The four ministers then reported to François Bayrou with a view to the final decision.
But in the opinion of several socialist participants, this meeting did not go as they hoped. “We are just starting to have precise answers and, unsurprisingly, the count is not there,” whispers a socialist who participated in the meeting at the Ministry of Health. Everything will crystallize in the last moments. They sent us back to the next floor, and we are not satisfied with the answers on PLF and PLFSS. This is below the level of listening that was theirs last week. »
Another socialist offers the same story. “It went very badly: the account is not there,” he laments. They presented us with the same budget as Michel Barnier. We're making fun of the world: it's a comedy. There will be censorship on Thursday if there is no development. After all the discussions, they think they can make us swallow this! We must now reopen the discussion and we will send a message of firmness in the coming hours. »
