Macron's great gamble could well create even more havoc

Toulouse

IN reaction to the ongoing "Yellow Vest" revolt in France, President Emmanuel Macron has decided to hold a "grand" nationwide debate. Over the coming months, locally organised workshops, Internet-based consultations, and regional citizen conferences will assess the French public's views on four issues: environmental policy, democracy and identity, taxes, and the organisation of the state.

But Mr Macron's plan faces three obstacles. For starters, French public opinion is rife with contradictions. The yellow vests, for example, want both lower taxes and more public services. Neither demand is unreasonable. But nor is such a fiscal approach sustainable in a country where public expenditure amounts to 57 per cent of GDP and the debt ratio, already officially estimated at close to 100 per cent, does not include large off-balance-sheet public liabilities like unfunded pensions.