23 July 2013

FT: François Hollande's optimism on growth not shared by supporters

With polls showing the electorate does not share the president's optimism, the reality is that Mr Hollande is struggling to convince even his own supporters that a significant turnaround is in view.

Mr Hollande himself has called in the leaders of parties of the left this week to lobby for their support on difficult issues looming in September, notably pension reform and next year’s budget.

There are deep reservations on the left about Mr Hollande’s pension reform plans, and his insistence that the balance of heavy budget savings required over the next two years will fall on spending cuts, not tax increases.

Despite clear signals from Mr Hollande that pension reform will be limited in scope, trade unions are already promising demonstrations in the autumn. The UMP has meanwhile attacked the government for not acting boldly enough to reform the economy.

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