French Elections: “Work More”

By Emily Von Sydow, Guest Author

[Emily is a Brussels based Swedish journalist and writer, whom I met at a dinner party in Brussels recently. It was the week before the French elections, and all of Europe was eagerly awaiting the fate of France, as it would spell a magnificent opportunity for the triumph of capitalism, if the right candidate won. I invited Emily to write this piece.]

Who needs Sopranos when you have French elections? The thrill, suspense, love affairs, power struggle, money – they’re all there, with the exception of the crushed knee caps.

This past French presidential election campaign reestablished politics as the major democratic force in Western society: Not market forces, not media, but sheer politics. The best political programme won after intense campaigning and an impressive turnout.

Nicolas Sarkozy presented and defended the most credible programme for how to create more wealth and more jobs in France. He used a simple, but not simplistic formula: Work more. Work more to sustain the older generations, work more to expand the market and give jobs to the young.

That is a daring proposal in a country where free time is sacred, the 35 hour week was installed after tough negotiations and early retirement is a fringe benefit for the majority of the “fonctionnaires” state employees.

Work more means not taxing the incentive out of working more, thus those who want to expand their 35-hour week can do so without being punished by the tax authorities.

There has been much ado about Sarkozy’s xenophobic stance on immigration. The fact is that he, as minister for interior, suggested voting rights for all foreigners, which is hardly a popular measure by extreme right standards. He also suggested affirmative action, although that implies a breach with the very heart of French republicanism, namely that you are not
only French but you also carry another cultural heritage.

Ségolène Royal, the socialist candidate, will be judged on her achievements in the parliamentary elections in mid-June. They are going to be abysmal, since Sarkozy in a most machiavellian manner, lured some of her most prominent socialists such as Bernard Kouchner, to his government as foreign minister.

Sarkozy is savouring his polls before the elections: At 65% approval rating, he is only 2% points after president Charles de Gaulle. A very prominent nose, seems to be one of the features of a successful French president.