Emmanuel Macron was elected President of the French Republic in May 2017. His party, la République en Marche, has a comfortable majority in the National Assembly, placing it in a strong position for pushing through social and economic reforms. On the international stage, President Macron styles himself as a leader in the fight against climate change, advocating for accession by all nations to the Paris Agreement on climate change. He also sees himself as a driving force behind the revival of Franco-German relations and European integration. The next presidential and parliamentary elections will be held in 2022.
France has a population of 65 million people, and its economic activity is picking up. Annual GDP growth is expected to be at least 1.6% in 2017-18, though below the OECD average of 2.1%. Stronger growth would help maintain the current levels of social protection, given that France has the highest levels of government expenditure among OECD countries (OECD, 2017a).
While the labour market has started to improve, productivity gains are still too modest. The poverty rate is low, but unemployment – at 10% – remains above the OECD average (6.3%). Many youngsters and low-skilled workers are excluded from the labour market, especially those living in poor neighbourhoods (OECD, 2017b).