Macron’s pensions move could define his remaining four years in office

Former banker who promised to reconcile the French people with the political class is accused of worsening disillusionment

When furious demonstrators in Dijon set fire to a stuffed dummy of Emmanuel Macron, and thousands of people took to the streets in cities such as Paris, Rennes and Marseille this week to protest against the government raising the pension age without a parliamentary vote, the French interior minister said the chaos brought back bad memories".

Indeed, four years after the gilets jaunes anti-government movement in which people in small towns and the countryside rose up, Macron was once again accused by many working-class voters of disdain for the public mood. Politicians from his party were yet again asking for police protection for fear of violent reprisals.