Frustration with Hollande at its peak; Thursday he will address the French people

Thursday, March 28th 2013 - 09:26 UTC

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Hollande only received good marks on foreign affairs

French President Francois Hollande's popularity rating has fallen to its lowest level since he came to power, according to a poll released a day before he is due to address the nation to ask for patience as he attempts to revive the economy.

Ten months into his tenure, the Socialist president is struggling to reverse rising jobless claims, which are at their highest level in 15 years, and to stimulate an economy teetering near recession.

Only 27% of those polled in the LH2 poll for left-leaning weekly Le Nouvel Observateur expressed satisfaction with Hollande, with 68% dissatisfied.

Hollande was elected last May on pledges to get people back to work. His inability to meet that goal and a steady stream of weak economic data has eroded his popularity, which fell to about 30% late last month, according to various polls.

In the LH2 survey, just 15% of respondents said they were satisfied with his efforts to fight unemployment, with 81% dissatisfied. His efforts to reduce the public debt fared only slightly better, garnering a 22% satisfaction rate.

“This assessment ... shows that his May 2012 designation as a 'candidate of change' now leaves people with a feeling they have been deceived, which is amplified for his measures to fight unemployment and reduce the public debt,” said pollster LH2.

Only in Hollande's management of foreign relations did those polled express more satisfaction than dissatisfaction: 47% against 45%.

Hollande is due to give a prime-time television interview on Thursday aimed at reassuring a sceptical public over the economic outlook. The survey questioned 968 people by telephone on March 22 and 23.

Categories: Politics, International.

Tags: Europe, France, France economy, Francois Hollande.

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Condorito
Well who'd have thought he would be struggling?
I mean, he promised to revert a debt crisis by spending more, why is that not working?

Your duck l'orange is coming home to roost France (and Europe in general). Your public is accustomed to public services you can't afford, your holidays are too long, your working day too short.

Unfortunately the only way out is that things need to get as bad as they are in Spain before reality slaps the public to its senses.
Mar 28th, 2013 - 12:50 pm 0
jakesnake
How about starting with a 40 hour work week? Productivity? What's that?
Mar 28th, 2013 - 02:40 pm 0
John Troll the 3rd
Read the two people above, they live to work. They will die, and will have not had a moment of personal growth in their lives.

Chile and the UK are machine societies. It may be good for economics (but even there the UK is really no better off than France, except the French can actually enjoy life a little), but they are empty of anyhing else meaningful. Which is why no one ever says “I'll go to the UK or Chile for the culture, or the food, or the art, or the nightlife, or the joie-de-vivre”.
Mar 28th, 2013 - 05:56 pm 0

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