workers and the North on the political return program of the former Minister of the Interior

Sunday September 29, 2024, Gérald Darmanin organized his political comeback, in Tourcoing. That of a former Minister of the Interior, who has just left the government to return to the benches of the National Assembly. He does not sign a blank check to the new Prime Minister, in particular on a possible increase in taxes. In addition, he launched a “Popular” think tank with workers as its core target.

“Work no longer pays“. A sentence, like a refrain in Gérald Darmanin’s speech. In front of Gabriel Attal, Elisabeth Borne and Edouard Philippe, former Prime Ministers, and after having established that “the central bloc that we represent is at odds with modest people” and that “Only 6% of workers and employees voted for us in the European elections”the former mayor of Tourcoing rolled out a list of ideas. Objective, to recreate an audible space of the center-right social bloc.

After wishing, for France, the success of Michel Barnier’s government, Gérald Darmanin warned: “II know that many of us will not be able to support a government that would raise taxes.” He even warns: “When we go towards this ease, when we start by increasing the taxes of a few, we end up raise taxes for everyone! And the losers are always the workers.” He then adds: “The money of the wealthiest must go into job creation, not into public coffers.”

Some 500 people gathered at the Tourcoing Botanical Garden to listen to the deputy from the North. “Millions of employees, workers and employees are no longer able to survive. Whereas 15 years ago, 60% of them managed to save. Today it’s the opposite : a large majority of French people are no longer able to put money aside. Not even a few dozen euros. And yet, saving is the little extra that allows you to overcome an unforeseen difficulty and face the challenges of life.”

Gérald Darmanin then launches into proposals in a give-and-take mode, two days before the general policy declaration of the new Prime Minister. “For businesses, let’s put the contract in their hands: no additional taxes, or even reductions, such as production taxes which are weighing down our industry and, in exchange, businesses are expected to fully play their social role. I know that many of them do it, especially here, in this generous North which invented, in particular, the 1% accommodation.”

In passing, light tackles to the head of state, never mentioned, Emmanuel Macron: “It is through tailoring and empathy that we will respond and not through policies public imagined too often from Paris” or even “the State cannot do everything and it must agree to work with its main partners: businesses, local authorities, associations”. When the president has often been accused of not relying on elected officials and social partners.

Then, he invokes the founder of the 5th Republic: “Let’s go much further in a great logic of Gaullian participation: let’s eliminate the activity bonus and transform it into a reduction in costs to contribute to a reasonable increase in the minimum wage”.

More surprising in the mouth of the former elected representative of Les Républicains, the reference to the former mayor of Lille : “Pierre Mauroy wrote that he wanted to put blue back in the sky. This should be the goal of every policy. This must be our goal“.

“Preference to workers”

Still in his line of defending workers, he points to “social reproduction”, before tackling one of the themes dear to the RN, national preference. He then declares: “II hear some people talk about national preference as a solution. Nothing, however, is more demagogic. No matter the nationality of those who work: they work and sometimes very hard to make our economy, our schools, our EHPADs or our hospital work. And it is not here in Tourcoing where Poles, Italians, Spaniards, Portuguese, Asians and North Africans have succeeded one another in textiles and printing that we would say the opposite. So rather than talking about national preference, let us instead propose preference for workers”.

He then adds : “That those who work can have priority access to housing, places in crèche, aid for transport”.

Then come proposals: the 1% disability rate for caregivers of elderly people or disabled children, employee shareholding, the “single social payment” : pay all social assistance at once, limit assistance to 75% of the minimum wage, etc.

He then suggests : “Let’s launch the big social conference with employers and unions so that the State guides, trusts and encourages a new model of capitalism where happy employees are our collective goal.”

Ideas, proposals and finally the presidential election in our sights. This is one of the difficulties of the coming months for Gérald Darmanin, not to disappear from the national scene, he, the now simple deputy. So, he announced the creation of “a new place of reflection” with the following themes: “sharing, empathy, merit, authority”. (…) “Popular” will be its name, as if to remind us every day that only the inspirations of the people count.“, he explained, with the idea, of course, of “govern tomorrow“.