FRENCH PRESIDENT Nicolas Sarkozy yesterday signed his controversial pension reform into law, bringing to an end a protracted dispute over the plan to raise the minimum retirement age from 60 to 62.
Mr Sarkozy told yesterday’s cabinet meeting that the reform had “saved” the pensions system, his office said in a statement.
The campaign by trade unions against the plan had presented Mr Sarkozy with one of the most difficult periods of his term, with school blockades, petrol shortages and a series of street protests attended by millions putting severe pressure on his government.
While his approval ratings remain at record lows, the passage of the reform – which overcame its final obstacle on Tuesday when the constitutional council gave its approval – gives Mr Sarkozy a boost.
“I listened to the concerns that were expressed during the debates, and I’m fully aware that it’s a difficult reform,” the president said yesterday.
The Socialist Party, which saw the lowering of the retirement age from 65 to 60 as one of the major achievements of former president François Mitterrand, complained that Mr Sarkozy had not taken the concerns of voters seriously.
Its leader, Martine Aubry, told French radio that Mr Sarkozy “thinks that by keeping his head down and not listening to anybody, he is showing courage”.
The government argued that without its plan to raise the minimum retirement age, the pensions system would run up annual deficits of €50 billion by 2020.