No more TV licence: The measures Macron is banking on to fight cost of living crisis
With prices of essential products as well as fuel continuing to rise in France President Emmanuel Macron is planning on introducing or extending a series of measures to ease the burden on households.
With the parliamentary elections a month away (June 12th - 19th) and Prime Minister Jean Castex's resignation expected imminently Macron's current government spokesman Gabriel Attal has listed a few steps it would take to combat inflation and rising costs of living.
The measures will of course depend on Macron's group winning a majority in parliament.
The bill, which would focus on household purchasing power would be in parliament "as soon as the MPs are elected," promised current president of the Assemblé Nationale and Macron ally, Richard Ferrand, last Sunday.
Following Wednesday's Council of Minister's meeting government spokesperson Gabriel Attal mentioned a few measures that the new government - once it has been named - will seek to push through.
Here is what they have proposed so far:
Extending the existing cap on energy prices until the end of 2022
In September 2021, Prime Minister Jean Castex announced a "tariff shield" to protect French households from global increases on electricity tariffs. The price hike intended for February 2022 was capped at four percent, which stands to be extended until the end of 2022.
Extending of the €0.15 to €0.18 rebate per litre of fuel, to address the rising cost of fuel
As of April 1st, the French government has been offering a €0.15 to €0.18 rebate per litre of fuel to offset soaring fuel prices. This measure, which cost the French government just over €2 billion, was only intended to be in effect for four months (originally set to end August 2022). It also stands to be extended after the upcoming parliamentary elections. There is also talk of creating an additional aid device specifically for workers who travel long distances to get to the office.
Abolishing the 'audiovisual tax' or TV licence
Any resident that owns a television or "equivalent device" is required to pay an audiovisual license fee (redevance audiovisuelle).
The money from this tax is used to finance public television and radio broadcasters. On the campaign trail, President Macron promised to scrap this tax if re-elected. The official notes from Council of Minister's meeting says the government intends to do this in 2022, but does not make it clear when.
Tripling of the cap for the "Macron" bonus
This is the tax-free bonus that companies can choose to offer to employees who make under the minimum wage tripled. The government is now proposing to triple the original maximum for this bonus, which was previously set to €1,000. It could rise to €2,000, and even to €6,000 for companies, with less than 50 employees.
Indexing pensions, to make them more reflective of higher costs of living
Macron discussed adjusting retirees' pensions to reflect inflation while campaigning. The Minister of the Economy, Bruno Le Maire referred to it as an "urgent measure" to increase the purchasing power of elderly French people.
Creating a food voucher for the lowest earning households
Another campaign promise from Macron, this would be specifically intended to help low-earning households and self-employed people combat rising prices at the grocery store. This could represent between €50 to €60 per month.
Ultimately, the implementation of the law to build up household purchasing power will depend on the results of the législatives. The latest polls indicate that the Presidents' Ensemble coalition will win an estimated 300 to 350 seats, which represents an absolute majority. In contrast, the United Left coalition (Nupes) are expected to come in second place with between 105 and 168 seats, while the National Rally and the Republicans are estimated to trail behind, respectively.
What about the other parties, though?
Jean-Luc Mélenchon has been campaigning for the 3ème tour (parliamentary elections) with proposals to lower the VAT (the 'Value Added Tax,' or Goods and Services Tax that exists in the European Union) and fix prices for certain products. Some of Mélenchon's co-candidates in the Left coalition have proposed more drastic changes, such as a proposal to index wages to be proportional to rising inflation. Meanwhile, Marine Le Pen has stated her opposition to Macron's government's plans, arguing they support the already privileged, and that her party would work to "defend work and purchasing power."
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With the parliamentary elections a month away (June 12th - 19th) and Prime Minister Jean Castex's resignation expected imminently Macron's current government spokesman Gabriel Attal has listed a few steps it would take to combat inflation and rising costs of living.
The measures will of course depend on Macron's group winning a majority in parliament.
The bill, which would focus on household purchasing power would be in parliament "as soon as the MPs are elected," promised current president of the Assemblé Nationale and Macron ally, Richard Ferrand, last Sunday.
Following Wednesday's Council of Minister's meeting government spokesperson Gabriel Attal mentioned a few measures that the new government - once it has been named - will seek to push through.
Here is what they have proposed so far:
Extending the existing cap on energy prices until the end of 2022
In September 2021, Prime Minister Jean Castex announced a "tariff shield" to protect French households from global increases on electricity tariffs. The price hike intended for February 2022 was capped at four percent, which stands to be extended until the end of 2022.
Extending of the €0.15 to €0.18 rebate per litre of fuel, to address the rising cost of fuel
As of April 1st, the French government has been offering a €0.15 to €0.18 rebate per litre of fuel to offset soaring fuel prices. This measure, which cost the French government just over €2 billion, was only intended to be in effect for four months (originally set to end August 2022). It also stands to be extended after the upcoming parliamentary elections. There is also talk of creating an additional aid device specifically for workers who travel long distances to get to the office.
Abolishing the 'audiovisual tax' or TV licence
Any resident that owns a television or "equivalent device" is required to pay an audiovisual license fee (redevance audiovisuelle).
The money from this tax is used to finance public television and radio broadcasters. On the campaign trail, President Macron promised to scrap this tax if re-elected. The official notes from Council of Minister's meeting says the government intends to do this in 2022, but does not make it clear when.
Tripling of the cap for the "Macron" bonus
This is the tax-free bonus that companies can choose to offer to employees who make under the minimum wage tripled. The government is now proposing to triple the original maximum for this bonus, which was previously set to €1,000. It could rise to €2,000, and even to €6,000 for companies, with less than 50 employees.
Indexing pensions, to make them more reflective of higher costs of living
Macron discussed adjusting retirees' pensions to reflect inflation while campaigning. The Minister of the Economy, Bruno Le Maire referred to it as an "urgent measure" to increase the purchasing power of elderly French people.
Creating a food voucher for the lowest earning households
Another campaign promise from Macron, this would be specifically intended to help low-earning households and self-employed people combat rising prices at the grocery store. This could represent between €50 to €60 per month.
Ultimately, the implementation of the law to build up household purchasing power will depend on the results of the législatives. The latest polls indicate that the Presidents' Ensemble coalition will win an estimated 300 to 350 seats, which represents an absolute majority. In contrast, the United Left coalition (Nupes) are expected to come in second place with between 105 and 168 seats, while the National Rally and the Republicans are estimated to trail behind, respectively.
What about the other parties, though?
Jean-Luc Mélenchon has been campaigning for the 3ème tour (parliamentary elections) with proposals to lower the VAT (the 'Value Added Tax,' or Goods and Services Tax that exists in the European Union) and fix prices for certain products. Some of Mélenchon's co-candidates in the Left coalition have proposed more drastic changes, such as a proposal to index wages to be proportional to rising inflation. Meanwhile, Marine Le Pen has stated her opposition to Macron's government's plans, arguing they support the already privileged, and that her party would work to "defend work and purchasing power."
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