2023-07-06 16:30:00
The Aix Economic Meetings are now firmly anchored in the French economic landscape. From Aix-en-Provence, more than 360 speakers, including many economists and business leaders, will debate this weekend on the theme “Recreating hope” under the leadership of economist Jean-Hervé Lorenzi.
Each year, you make recommendations, are they followed up?
The first year, we were laughing because there were only 25 economists who listened to our conclusions! And then there were two key moments: the idea of the CICE (tax credit for competitiveness and employment) was developed during the Rencontres d’Aix.
Just like the transformation of the ISF (solidarity tax on wealth) into IFI (tax on real estate wealth) that Edouard Philippe did not want to carry out immediately but that Bruno Le Maire, Minister of the Economy, decided to accelerate during the Meetings. But in France, politicians don’t really like to listen to economists.
For what?
Presidents often come from the Finance Inspectorate, like Giscard and Macron who consider that they don’t need advice and are geniuses. For Mitterrand, economics was a secondary art. Pierre Mauroy, his Prime Minister, had advised him to devalue the franc as soon as he was elected – which should have been done – and Mitterrand did not want to start a mandate with a devaluation.
This year you will publish a manifesto. What’s changing?
All stakeholders, our 125 partners, members of the Cercle des Economistes [à l’initiative des Rencontres, ndlr], the hundred or so outside contributors will be involved. There will be strong commitments. Like ensuring that within five years, there are no more desocialized young people in the country. It is the whole society that can achieve this, it is not a question of giving advice to the government. Our destiny is collective. The objective is therefore also to increase from 500,000 to one million visitors.
This edition takes place in a context of high inflation and rate hikes by central banks. Is it worrying?
The 6% inflation is closely linked to energy phenomena and the exit from the Covid crisis. It is not a question of underlying inflation in a chase between prices and wages. We are rather in a pandemic, geographical and climatic shock, but for people of my generation, 5 to 6% inflation is not the end of the world. The problem is not that the rates reach 4% but how long they will stay there. Because inflation will come down. Our central bankers must not get into a rage and we find ourselves in a situation similar to July 2008 where, with the rise in rates, we were entering a crisis.
We are also coming out of a social crisis, with the pension reform…
It should not be presented like that, targeting the starting age at 64 years. If the government had mentioned the number of quarters required, it would have been different. I had worked on the first reform which had been incomprehensible and the second is inaudible. The central question is how to increase the activity rate of the over 60s. We are the only developed country where two-thirds of people over 60 no longer work…
Most unions will be present this year?
Yes, because you can’t get a change in society if you don’t get everyone talking. The only exception that we make to the Meetings is that of the National Rally, but this is debated and it is not obvious that it remains. We cannot exclude 3% of the French.
> Free admission, reservations for certain round tables. From July 7 to 9 at Jourdan Park, in Aix-en-Provence.
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