Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu said France will release diesel reserves to lower prices at the pump and vowed to ensure power bills won’t surge this winter in a bid to quell a cost-of-living crisis and mounting student unrest.
As part of a recent agreement among the Group of Seven nations, the government will release 10 million barrels of diesel from strategic stockpiles over the next three months, which should lower the retail price by 12 to 18 euro cents, Lecornu said in a speech from his office in Paris.
“Global prices will continue to fluctuate, but this will allow us to cushion part of the shock,” Lecornu said Wednesday evening, as hundreds of French high schools were shut across the country in protests that at times became violent.
Stockpiles will be monitored to preserve France’s security of supply, and operators will have up to one year to rebuild the strategic reserves, he said. State-owned Electricite de France SA will have to maximize output as the government will ensure that power bills remain under control, the premier said.
Lecornu’s comments came as teacher unions joined a student-led movement demanding more money for education. The protests calling for smaller class sizes, building renovations and a reform of the system that allocates university slots started in the Paris region in September before unexpectedly gaining steam last week.
‘Funded measures’
Measures to address some of the students’ demands will be unveiled by the government by the end of the month, Lecornu also said. While they may be amended during the 2027 budget discussion in Parliament, he stressed that the cash-strapped government must contain public deficits as borrowing costs soar.
“I wish concrete, swift, hence funded measures,” Lecornu said.
The government will also present new aid for farmers, and new steps to help the country shift away from fossil fuels.
The measures will supplement previously announced aid to reduce fuel bills of fishermen, farmers, trucking and building companies, nurses and other motorists who heavily rely on cars for work.
Yet there’s little room for costly reforms. The unrest comes against a backdrop of heightened scrutiny in financial markets as investors dump French assets on concern over a bloated budget deficit and political instability.
The government has proposed a spending package to pare the fiscal shortfall to 5 percent of economic output in 2027 — the target it missed this year.
But opposition groups who have twice toppled prime ministers over budget plans in the last two years are reluctant to compromise with less than seven months until presidential elections.
