Le Pen’s ‘freedom’ campaign starts

FRANCE’S FAR-RIGHT party leader Marine Le Pen kicked off her presidential campaign on Saturday, hoping promises to shield voters from globalisation boost her chances at a time of French political turmoil.

Opinion polls see the 48-year old daughter of National Front (FN) founder Jean-marie Le Pen topping the first round on April 23 but then losing the May 7 run-off to a mainstream candidate. The FN hopes a two-day rally in Lyon, where Le Pen is spelling out her electoral platform, will help convince voters to back her.

“The aim of this programme is first of all to give France its freedom back and give the people a voice,” Le Pen said in the introduction to the manifesto.

In 144 “commitments”, Le Pen proposes leaving the euro zone, taxes on the job contracts of foreigners, lowering the retirement age and increasing several welfare benefits while lowering payroll tax for small firms and income tax.

The manifesto also foresees reserving certain rights now available to all residents, including free education, to French citizens only, curbing migration and leaving NATO’S integrated command. Emmanuel Macron, a pro-european centrist candidate whom polls say is likely to be Le Pen’s opponent in the presidential election run-off, also held a rally in Lyon on Saturday to propose a radically different platform. “This presidential election puts two opposite proposals,” Le Pen said. “The ‘globalist’ choice backed by all my opponents ... and the ‘patriotic’ choice which I personify.”

If elected, Le Pen says she would immediately seek an overhaul of the European Union that would reduce it to a very loose cooperative of nations with no single currency and no border-free area. If, as is likely, France’s EU partners refuse to agree to this, she will call a referendum to leave the EU.

The FN would combine leaving the euro with unorthodox policies including money printing, currency intervention and import taxes, Jean Messiha, who has overseen the drafting of Le Pen’s manifesto, said ahead of the rally.

However, Le Pen and her party are facing scandals, including one over assistants in the European Parliament and investigations over her 2012 campaign financing. REUTERS

Marine Le Pen at the rally to launch her campaign. Reuters