Last month the French government announced that the retirement age would move upwards from age 62 to age 64. The decision was announced by Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne in keeping with a section of the French constitution called Article 49.3 which allows the government to essentially pass major changes without a vote from the National Assembly. Today France’s Constitutional Council approved the change in retirement age.

France’s Constitutional Council on Friday approved an unpopular plan to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64 in a victory for President Emmanuel Macron after months of mass protests that have damaged his leadership.

The decision dismayed or enraged critics of the pension plan. Hundreds of union activists and others gathered peacefully in Paris Friday evening before some groups broke off in marches toward the historic Bastille plaza and beyond, setting fires to garbage bins and scooters as police fired tear gas or pushed them back.

Unions and Macron’s political opponents vowed to maintain pressure on the government to withdraw the bill, and activists threatened scattered new protests Saturday.

President Macron is expected to enact the law this weekend, starting a process of gradually increasing the retirement age over the next several years. And here it’s worth mentioning that France’s retirement age was the lowest of any EU nation prior to this change and even afterwards it’s still lower than most nations.

Even with the changes, France’s new retirement age will still be below the norm in Europe and in many other developed economies, where the age at which full pension benefits apply is 65 and is increasingly moving towards 67.

State pensions in France are also more generous than elsewhere. At nearly 14% of GDP in 2018, the country’s spending on state pensions is larger than in most other countries, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

But of course this is France where any attempt to reform the country’s generous social contract with workers is met with outrage and street protests. Even before the change to the retirement age was announced there were protests estimate at one million people. Today, in anticipation of the Council’s decision, police prepared for more of the same.

The authorities had banned demonstrations in front of the Constitutional Council building in Paris until Saturday morning, but crowds of protesters had gathered nearby and the ruling was met with jeers.

Some demonstrators chanted they would continue protesting until the changes were withdrawn.

Later, several fires were set across the city as riot police tried to contain the situation, sometimes using tear gas. Dozens of people have reportedly been arrested.

Fires were also lit during demonstrations in Rennes and Nantes, while there were tense standoffs at times between protesters and police in Lyon.

There are lots of videos from around France. I’m not going to try to cover them all but here are a few, starting with an initial gather in the wake of the court’s decision.

Des milliers de manifestants se rassemblent devant l'Hotel de Ville de Paris suite à la décision du Conseil Constitutionnel (@LucAuffret/ @LibreQg) #ReformeDesRetraites #France #ConseilConstitutionel #Conseil_Constitutionnel #manifestationpic.twitter.com/e4skXG0qAc

— Anonyme Citoyen (@AnonymeCitoyen) April 14, 2023

People setting trash on fire in the streets.

Des milliers de personnes en spontanée dans les rues de Paris 🔥 pic.twitter.com/kirz5TXIQz

— Anonyme Citoyen (@AnonymeCitoyen) April 14, 2023

People setting a police station on fire:

🚨🇫🇷ALERTE INFO – Un commissariat prend feu à #Rennes. pic.twitter.com/YnwsoTKFWR

— AlertesInfos (@AlertesInfos) April 14, 2023

In Paris they set the Louis Vuitton headquarters on fire, the idea being that France should raise taxes on the rich rather than ask people to work longer.

🇫🇷The French Revolution Continues🇫🇷

Protesters storming Louis Vuitton HQ

Silence still from fascist tyrannical authoritative dictator Macron – I’m sure his WEF puppet masters are disapproving as he awaits instructions.#France #Paris #Macron pic.twitter.com/6zMKhxxOmT

— Concerned Citizen (@cotupacs) April 13, 2023

French police are also being pretty aggressive.

A slaughter. Macron is a real psychopathic criminal. pic.twitter.com/rkULLvDNhm

— RadioGenova (@RadioGenova) April 13, 2023

As I write this it’s just after midnight in Paris and the protests are still going.

Des barricades continuent d'être érigées dans les rues de Paris où les manifestations se poursuivent (@Ab7Media) #ReformeDesRetraites #France #ConseilConstitutionel #manifestationpic.twitter.com/QVu5lmZQXp

— Anonyme Citoyen (@AnonymeCitoyen) April 14, 2023

Anywhere else this would look like the end of civilization but in France protesters will do this 2-3 times a month. The hope for Macron is that once he enacts the law this weekend the protesters will finally give up and go home. That would make sense anywhere else but I’m not sure it will work here.

BBC Newsnight spoke to a protester and asked a very simple question: Is it still possible for you to win by continuing these protests? He admitted that it didn’t seem possible but said there was nothing else they could do so they’ll just keep protesting. In France, street protests are an idée fixe.

“This is the only way we have to protest so we will continue, even if it’s not working”@BBCJoeInwood speaks to demonstrators in Paris, after France's top constitutional body ruled that President Macron's unpopular pension reform plan can go ahead.#Newsnight pic.twitter.com/VlxIWFsLUc

— BBC Newsnight (@BBCNewsnight) April 14, 2023