Next Sunday the second round of the presidential elections will be held in France, as in 2017, Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen will face each other again for power.
Both candidates have different points of view that come to generate friction such as pension reform, formulas in support of purchasing power, the challenge of immigration, the European vision, or the war in Ukraine.
Purchasing power
Macron presumes to have improved in the last five years thanks to tax cuts, he seeks to compensate for the increase in inflation with specific aid, such as a premium exempt from contributions that companies can give their workers. He also advocates ending the audiovisual rate that most French people pay.
On the other hand, Le Pen is committed to lowering VAT on fuel and electricity from 20% to 5.5%, reducing motorway tolls and the audiovisual rate, as well as tax improvements for families with at least two children.
Another issue that confronts them is related to pensions. Macron has proposed gradually delaying the minimum retirement age from 62 to 65 years, although with exceptions for the toughest trades, while he is committed to increasing the minimum pension to 1,100 euros per month and indexing all pensions with inflation. Lately, he says he is willing to evaluate the need to raise the age to 65 or 64 years.
Marine Le Pen, on the other hand, stated that she will maintain the current retirement age at 62, but will allow those who have started working before the age of 20 and accumulate 40 years of contributions to retire at 60.
Immigration
The arrival of migrants is a topic that always gives rise to talk in Europe since the continent receives millions of people who are looking for a better life.
Marine Le Pen has proposed holding a referendum on immigration, reserving social assistance for the French and foreigners who have been contributing for at least five years. In addition, it abolishes the automatic right to French nationality for those born in France and limits access to nationality
The French ruling party led by Macron wishes to continue with the current policy but tighten the granting of visas for long-term stays, which would condition the passing of a French exam and demonstrating professional insertion.
War in Ukraine
Another key factor in the elections is the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Macron is committed to helping Ukraine militarily and facilitating the arrival of refugees from that country and imposing harsh sanctions on Russia.
While Le Pen proposes an alliance with Russia once the conflict is over, arguing that Europe is obliged to come to terms with Moscow to prevent it from falling into the arms of Beijing.
Environmentalism
Macron is the candidate who cares the most about the environment and wants to develop renewable energies in parallel to nuclear energy, in addition, he wants to introduce a carbon tax at the European level, promote the use of electric vehicles and finance the renovation of 700,000 homes a year so that they consume less energy.
Le Pen, on the other hand, bets on nuclear energy and proposes to eliminate wind power, even dismantling existing wind turbines.
Another clash between the candidates is over the European Union, since Macron wants to strengthen ties between the countries of the old continent and thus be able to compete with China and the United States, while Le Pen advocates the supremacy of national law over community law and why France leaves the Schengen area.
Finally, Marine Le Pen reported that she will govern through referendums if she does not have a parliamentary majority. In addition, she reported that she plans to change the term of office to 7 years without reelection.
Macron has also been in favor of referendums, but not to give the people the possibility of requesting the dismissal of public officials through the collection of signatures.
