It is not just the pension reform that is putting the government under pressure. For many months already, inflation has been at the heart of the executive’s concerns. And the deputies of the majority have constantly raised the growing concerns of the French regarding their end of the month. And their difficulties in paying for their food.
While negotiations between manufacturers and retail brands end on Wednesday, and while INSEE measured inflation on Tuesday at 6.2% in February over one year but 14.5% for the food , Dominique Schelcher, CEO of System U, throws a stone into the pond.
In an interview with the “Parisien”, Wednesday, he lets go that “the politicians have absolutely not taken the measure of the gravity of the situation”. However, he assures that he is “favourable” to the idea of an anti-inflation basket launched a few weeks ago by the Minister Delegate for Trade, Olivia Grégoire, and points out the other distribution professionals “who do not go there not. »
“Few levers”
“What is hard with inflation is that it erases everything we did over the previous five-year period on work that pays better. This affects more the most modest, those who live far from cities. And what is very complicated is that there are few levers”, observes a close friend of Emmanuel Macron, who underlines “the enormous communication that the signs make, saying we are on the side of the French and territories once morest evil industrialists”. A communication in the face of which it is difficult to reply.
For the moment, the government is struggling with this anti-inflation basket – 50 food and non-food products supposed to meet the needs of a family with two children – which has mainly come up once morest the skepticism of the profession. Asked regarding inflation on Tuesday during current questions to the government in the Assembly, the Minister of Economy and Finance, Bruno Le Maire, assured that the “solutions on food products, we have been working on them for several days “, stressing that he would receive the distributors once more” in the coming days “with his colleague Olivia Grégoire.
“In the coming days, I will present measures which will be effective and credible and which will once once more allow France […] to contain inflation for our compatriots,” he promised without giving further details. These measures must be taken “with the support of distributors”, he insisted. Distributors who, Emmanuel Macron had called during his visit to the Salon de l’Agriculture on Saturday, must make “an effort on their margins. »
An “anti-inflation basket” or “something else”
Asked this Wednesday on France 2 regarding the vagueness of these measures to come by March 15, Olivia Grégoire, assured, “three times yes”, that “the Prime Minister, the Minister of the Economy” and herself do everything to prepare an “anti-inflation basket” or “something else”. “I don’t have a monopoly on good ideas, it will be a basket, a caddy or something else… […] I am awaiting counter-proposals from distributors”.
Counter-proposals and “responsibility”, she also dropped, while the government fears the feelings and anger of the French on the subject. This, on the eve of a week of mobilization and renewable strikes once morest the pension reform. “Faced with inflation in food which will surely remain sustained, we must provide a collective, fair and rapid response. The president recalled it, everyone must contribute to the effort once morest inflation: we are therefore awaiting the proposals of the large retailers, ”she insisted. The government’s objective is to have a collective response from mass distribution, fair – that is to say, according to the government, which does not penalize producers and industrial SMEs – and fast…
“Everyone must do their part”
On RMC / BFMTV, government spokesperson Olivier Véran also failed to overcome the feeling of helplessness on this tricky subject. He recalled all the measures that the government has so far put in place to fight once morest inflation – and in the lead the tariff shields on energy – and assured that “the State is doing its part and will continue to do its part , but everyone has to do their part. » « What does the large distribution do? asks an adviser to the executive.
“We are going to work with distributors and manufacturers so that, ultimately, the housewife’s basket is at controlled prices. This is what is being discussed with Bercy. The name or the formula, we will see, what matters is that at the checkout, the basket is at a controlled price. The objective is indeed that the effort relates to a “basket” and not promotions on only one type of products. “At least everyone offers a series of cheaper products,” supports Elisabeth Borne’s entourage.