Macron v the masses: France in flames again over president's high-risk reforms

Just how long can Emmanuel Macron ignore the fury over his pension changes?

- Agnés Poirier

AT FIRST, it was the sight. Now it is both the sight and the smell that depress and anger Parisians. As they emerge every morning from their home, a pungent reality stares them in the face. In half the French capital (the other half benefiting from private rubbish collecting), mountains of bin bags reach the first floor of buildings and block pavements, forcing pedestrians to walk in the middle of the street among cars and buses.

As more riots over President Macron’s pension reforms swept France last night, many Parisians have resorted to working from home to escape the rubbish. “I’m sheltering at home like during lockdown,” a friend tells me on the phone. “I have my shopping delivered and I do my gym via Zoom. I can’t stand the idea of Paris drowning in filth and swarming with rats.”