John Lichfield

1 week ago | thelocal.fr | John Lichfield

French PM François Bayrou is many things but he is not a populist. He believes in trusting the people, not lying to them. Populists tell the people that all their woes come from “cheating foreigners” (Donald Trump), “immigrants” (Marine Le Pen), “Europe” (Nigel Farage), “the rich” (Jean-Luc Mélenchon), “the elites” (all of the above).    Bayrou told the French people this week that their problems came from…themselves.

2 weeks ago | thelocal.fr | John Lichfield

Emmanuel Macron will have served two five-year terms, which is all that the constitution allows. Marine Le Pen will be banned as a convicted embezzler of public money, unless she at least partially wins her appeal next year. So who will be the next President of the Republic? Jordan Bardella, Marine Le Pen’s glib sidekick, will be only 32 years old. Even Le Pen suggested publicly the other day that her protégé was “not ready”.

3 weeks ago | thelocal.fr | John Lichfield

The Paris criminal court has given her the chance to live her dream. For the time being, she appears reluctant to do so. She continues to breed lies instead. Her five-year ban from electoral politics is everyone’s fault but hers, she says. “The system” is trying to destroy the saviour of the people. Meddling judges have used a “nuclear bomb” against democracy. The voices of 10,000,000 people have been silenced.

4 weeks ago | thelocal.fr | John Lichfield

They may. They probably won’t. Delayed judgement is due in the trial of Le Pen and other Far Right politicians and hangers-on for the embezzlement of millions of Euros from the European Parliament. If found guilty, Le Pen could be banned from seeking political office for five years. That part of her sentence may apply even if she appeals. Le Pen’s political career would, in effect, be over - or at least frozen until 2030. Note the repeated use of the word “may”.

1 month ago | thelocal.fr | John Lichfield

Two years ago this week President Emmanuel Macron used  his special, constitutional powers to increase the French retirement age from 62 to 64. The issue, never truly buried, may be about to reappear zombie-like to create a French domestic crisis on top of a European and international security crisis.