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French press review 2 September 2017

This morning newspapers are full of speculation about the possible future leader of the struggling Republicans party. They’re also busy commenting on the government’s labour reform, and the mayor of Paris’ run-in with automobiles.

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Le Monde is running an article about the main contender to lead the French mainstream right, Laurent Wauquiez.

After many years spent lurking in Nicholas Sarkozy’s shadow, he’s now a rising star, or rather a slow, steady comet, increasingly visible in these dark times the conservative Republicans (LR) party are going through.

In any case, a lot of right-wing voters see Wauquiez is the man of the hour, according to Le Monde.

Return of the hardliners

In the paper’s coverage, Wauquiez comes across as some sort of French Ted Cruz, if you can remember the much disliked candidate in last year's primary elections in the American Republican Party.

Laurent Wauquiez's fellow party members also seem to hate him.

First of all because he’s a shameless hardliner, who openly flirts with ideas of the far right.

For more liberal LR members like Alain Juppé's supporters, he embodies everything wrong in the party, namely identity-oriented populism.

They also dislike him for what they see as his blind opposition to Emmanuel Macron, even on topics which could bring them together.

Then there’s Wauquiez’s personality, which has been testing his colleagues’ nerves since he was elected MP in 2004, at the age of 29.

He’s described as a desperate opportunist, always ready to push his way to the front to grab the limelight.

He’s also quite the poser, according to Le Monde.

The paper says that even before his hair went naturally grey, Wauquiez was already dyeing it, to cultivate that mature, “salt and pepper” look.

In any case, since the downfall of the Republicans' main party figures, and given the lack of challengers for the leadership, the stars are now aligned for the ambitious 42-year-old.

Since last year he's been the president of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region and on Thursday, he announced his candidacy to become the party’s next leader.

According to Le Monde, it would seem many party members have resigned themselves to the fact that he could quite easily win.

Macron’s labour reform – a new age of French politics?

Le Figaro is all out in support of President Emmanuel Macron's changes to labour law, with a second consecutive editorial in its favour.

The paper is excited at the prospect that it signals a new age of French politics, in which people are finally ready to accept change.

Le Figaro points to some unions’ tepid opposition to the reform and others’  support for it to show that things are changing.

The right-wing paper seems to take heart from the comments made by Jean-Claude Mailly, the leader of one of the country’s biggest union, Force Ouvrière.

On Wednesday he said he wouldn’t call on his members to join in protests in 10 days’ time, alongside the hard-left France Unbowed party and the CGT, another big union.

Mailly went on to mock the “grumpy moaners” of his own union, who want to take to the streets.

Le Figaro says that “the old world”, where unions would brutally oppose policies which were chosen democratically, is coming to an end.

Paris mayor takes on automobiles

Libération brings us the story of an environmental struggle taking place in French cities, including Paris.

The mayor of the capital, Anne Hidalgo, has been doing everything she can to get people to cycle and use public transport, instead of using their cars.

That's a big part of her campaign to tackle both air and noise pollution.

But Libération says she's running into some stubborn opposition, mainly from drivers, who seem to have a bee in their bonnet.

They're not impressed by her plans to reduce the size of some busy roads which run through the heart of Paris, like the rue de Rivoli, to leave more room for cyclists and public transport.

In its editorial Libération says that since the 1950s vehicles have “invaded” our cities.

In response to drivers lobbying to oppose the mayor's plans, it says that it's high time the idea enters the heads of these “dinosaurs”, that towns are not built for vehicles and that pollution, noise, and accidents are ruining urban life.

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