Pension reform: François Bayrou will announce the results of his discussions with social partners on Thursday

François Bayrou stated before the Senate on Wednesday that he would announce the results of his latest discussions on pensions with social partners on Thursday afternoon, which began after four months of failed consultations between the two sides.

The Prime Minister will hold a press conference on Thursday at 5 p.m. at Matignon " to draw conclusions from (his) discussions" with trade unions and employers' organizations, his office said.

"I will continue to work with them until tomorrow afternoon. And tomorrow afternoon, I will tell the French people what agreement we can reach. And if there are still points of disagreement, the government will resolve them," Mr. Bayrou told senators, believing that the social partners were "just inches away from the success of the conclave."

He was responding to the leaders of the socialist group Patrick Kanner and the communist group Cécile Cukierman, as well as to the senator of the centrist union Jean-Marie Vanlerenberghe.

"It is wrong to think that the conclave was a failure."

"We will, as much as possible, take into account all the concessions and willingness to meet" between unions and employers. "And the government will assume its responsibilities," he added.

François Bayrou, who believes that "there is a way to ensure that none of the progress (...) made is lost" , also promised that " if this agreement leads to legislative provisions, they will be submitted to Parliament". "This work will not be forgotten, it will not be cancelled", he insisted.

"It is wrong to think that the conclave, as it has been called, was a failure. On the contrary," said the Prime Minister, a great defender of social dialogue, who had launched these consultations in exchange for the socialists' neutrality towards him, which had allowed him to escape censure on the budget.

But without waiting for the outcome of these final discussions between François Bayrou and the social partners, the socialists announced on Tuesday that they would submit a motion of censure against the government.

Following the observation of disagreement among the participants in the conclave on the night of Monday to Tuesday, François Bayrou launched last-ditch discussions to save the talks, by receiving the CFDT, CFE-CGC and CFTC together on the union side, and then the Medef and CPME separately on the employers' side.

CFDT union leader Marylise Léon called on the Prime Minister to take responsibility, stating that her union had "put its hands to the wheel." Medef union leader Patrick Martin said that "the responsibility (for the failure) was collective" and assured that he was "still intent on achieving success."