A week after the enactment of his regressive pension reform, imposed in the face of mass strikes and protests, President Nicolas Sarkozy went on TV to lay out his program for the rest of his term. The next presidential election is scheduled for 2012.
In an interview Tuesday, Sarkozy made clear that having inflicted a defeat on the working class, he intends to carry out draconian attacks on social programs while giving tax breaks to the rich and continuing France’s participation in imperialist wars...
One of his key announcements was a proposed cut in taxes for the wealthy. The ISF (Tax On Fortunes) is to be abolished and replaced with a tax on revenues and added value gained from property. This will save the wealthy € 4.1 billion yearly. Sarkozy claimed he was counterbalancing this by reducing tax breaks under the so-called “fiscal shield,” but these total only €679 million per year.
The president said he planned to align French tax rates with those of Germany by the autumn of 2011. “I cannot accept deficits in competitiveness with our main partner, Germany,” he declared.
He announced plans for draconian attacks on workers’ social rights. These include cuts in benefits for the unemployed, which he cynically presented as measures to boost employment. Saying “we have not tried everything against unemployment,” he announced negotiations with the unions for a “new unemployment benefit regime.”
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2010/nov2010/sark-n20.shtml
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