Following a televised press conference this week, observers of French politics say the country’s President, Emmanuel Macron, is shifting to the right.
Observers say that Macron’s shift was an attempt to meet the challenge of Marine le Pen and her National Rally (RN), which in recent years has been growing in popularity, as France struggles to deal with the challenges of migration and Islamic extremism.
In this week’s press conference, Macron promoted school uniforms and said that there must be interventions to boost the French birth rate. He also said that he would fight illegal migration as well as crack down on drug gangs.
Macron said that French values must be taught in schools, being quoted as saying: ‘Every generation must learn what the (French) Republic means – a history, duties, rights, a language, respect… and they must learn it from childhood.’
Le Pen called Macron’s speech ‘yet another interminable jabber’.
France will later this year take part in European elections. It remains to be seen if any of Macron’s interventions will help stave off the threat of the French right.