Mitterrand Switches to Thatcherite Policies

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DES DROITE NOVILAUX a BUSTE 6EЯ: 'efguacie responsabilte Renault strikes were the thin end of a wedge of working class action DOORCO• Advertisement LLLLLLL

JIM BENSON weighs up French developments since last summer.

ON the evening of May 10 1981 French workers poured into the streets in their thousands to celebrate an historic event: the elec tion of a socialist govern.

ment; "their" victory and "their" government. Despite three years of bitter bickering between the main workers' parties - the Socialists and Communists - and despite a deep and sharp divide between the trade union bureaucracies, workers overwhelmingly expressed their confidence in a social ist government elected on a bold programme: national isation of major monopol ies and banks, reflation of the economy, injection o! vast resources into socia services, etc.

A mere year later, the SP/CP government hardl pretends it will fulfil the wishes and hopes of the working class. On thi contrary, wracked by ar ever deepening economi crisis, the Mitterand Mauroy government ha: put its election manifest in abeyance and has under taken to resolve the crisi with capitalist measure which smack of Thatcher our and sacrifice hav become keywords of ever, political speech and state ment.

"Fellow workers, to wi the battle against the crisi we must tighten our belt' explains Jacques Delors minister of finances. "W must put a brake on wag increases" added Prim Minister Mauroy.

The Communist "Party senior partner in the government, quietl approves of the new turr For the benefit of its aud ence the CP declares it staunch refusal to "manag the crisis", but its economists are already mastering new terminologies: rather than talk about "austerity" they accommodate themselves with the word "rigour"; rather than use the word "profit" they are busy coining "new criteria of management to improve productivity and competitiveness"' Mitterrand's economic strategy started from a twopronged objective: to reflate the economy and to satisfy the basic economic demands of workers. In order to achieve this the SP/CP government undertook to:

1) increase consumption in order to stimulate production;

2) reduce unemployFinance Minister Delors ment by bringing industry to full productive capacity, 3) develop the nationalised sector.

The appointment of openly bourgeois ministers (like the Gaullist Michel Jobert, Minister of Commerce) and technocrats/administrators (like Jacques Delors, Minister of Finances) threw real doubts on the government's ability to implement its programme.

First the SMIC (legal minimum wage) was increased by 10%; nowhere near the 30% demanded by the CGT-CFDT unions in order to compensate for the fall in living standards since 1968.

In October 1980 Mitterrand declared: " a left sounding speech is not enough. What we need is •*3 million shareholders (230,000 of whom owned 47% of the shares) were generously compensated at a cost of 45 billion francs (£4 billion).

*In a move to compromise with the bosses' organisation CNPF - the equivalent of the CBI - the government chose new managing directors from the rank of the CNPF to head the nationalised industries. In other firms already nationalised, like Renault, Air France or SNIAS, vicious managements appointed by Giscard remained undisturbed.

Approach *Several months later, Dreyfus, Minister of Industry, summed up the government's approach to the nationalised sector in his "letter of commission" to the new managing directors: «You should be working towards 'economic efficiency' through a continual improvement of competitiveness . the criteria usually used in the management of industrial firms will apply to your group"

It is in this framework that managing directors of the nationalised public sector have defined their rights to draw up production plans for the next four LLANGOURY years.

Far from using nationalisation to reorganise the economy for the benefit of the working class and to achieve full employment, Mitterrand has shown little sign of tampering with capitalist structures.

Redundancies

Also the managing directors retained the right to make the necessary redundancies: already in the steel sector, plans have been drawn up to reduce. the workforce by 20,000 by 1985 in conformity with EEC strategy to reduce the European steel production. Twenty-five billion francs of public funds are already been earmarked to finance the operation.

*The government's predictions of a decisive reduction in unemployment have proved a pure rhetorical exercise. Unemployment has passed the 2-million mark, with a 350,000 increase since the socialists were voted in office.

Again the government's approach to the problem is far short of the measures enshrined in the election manifesto. Instead they opted for hand-outs to capitalists:

600 "solidarity contracts" (consisting of rebates, direct grants,

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etc.) have so far created 17,000 jobs - far short of the target of 150,000 a year - and this at the cost of 28 billion francs from public funds.

The massive and steady increase in unemployment has taken its toll of social security funds. UNEDIC, the biggest unemployment benefit fund, will show a deficit of 40 billion francs in 1983.

Measures destined to stabilise or even reduce the deficit are very similar to the attacks on claimants in this country: reduction of the benefits for the 'less disadvantaged" claimants, increase in National Insurance contributions, crackdown on "scroungers" ; etc.

The reduction in the working week to 39 hours took place amid massive industrial unrest. This was partly due to the way the government legislation was framed, leaving loopholes for the bosses.

The reform was forced by workers through active mobilisation and strikes. But this reduction has had hardly any effect on unemployment. Today Mauroy is already backpedalling on this aspect of the manifesto by declaring that the legal reduction of the working week to 35 hours will be considered in 1984!

Another aspect the

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Occupations demanded cut in hours government's policy reduce unemployment is to apply pressures on capitalists to invest and expand. Instead it chooses to rely on their good will by helping them with massive handouts:

*11 billion francs were slashed from the employers' contributions to the 'Professional Tax'' *National Insurance contributions were frozen.

*Tax evasion reached scandalous proportions -nearly 90 billion francs.

Despite all these generosities, capitalists have shown no sign of increasing their investments. Small businesses have invested in 1981 a mere 50% of their profits, big enterprises only 60%.

The rest of the money is used for speculation in the money markets or is simply exported abroad.

Deficit Even the proposed wealth tax, supposed to redistribute resources and reduce inequalities, will rake in a mere billion francs.

Faced with a budget deficit of 80 billion francs the government took certain monetarist measures, namely a devaluation of the frane by 10% in relation to the Mark. The weakness of the franc is due in part to the weakness

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