Explainer-Macron pension reform ends cherished French exception

FILE PHOTO: French police operate during a demonstration following a special address to the nation by French President Emmanuel Macron, after he signed into law the pension reform raising the retirement age, in Paris, France, April 17, 2023. REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq/File Photo

PARIS (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron may have pushed through his unpopular pension reform but only at great cost to his political capital, which he is now seeking to repair by offering talks with trade unions on other issues.

Given that his pension plan, which raises the statutory retirement age from 62 to 64, merely puts France more in line with its European Union neighbours, some foreign commentators have wondered what all the protests and public anger were about.