France Italy Europe Swept by Cost-of-Living Protests
Protests over living costs, housing and public services have spread across France, Italy and other European countries. France plans to deploy about 70,000…
France and Italy face fresh strikes and protests over living costs, housing and public services, as demonstrations spread across Europe. The unrest is putting pressure on governments and has prompted France to prepare a major security deployment for rallies planned on October 31.
Protests have also taken place in Spain, Belgium and Portugal. The demands vary, but demonstrators have called for higher wages, more affordable basic services and stronger social protection.
Young people have joined rallies over worsening education conditions, a lack of jobs and limited prospects for buying homes. Some demonstrations have escalated into clashes with police.
France prepares for another protest wave
France has seen the largest rallies described in the reports. Student demonstrations over education problems broadened into nationwide protests against the rising cost of living and government policy.
Unrest in several French cities on October 17 included cars set on fire, damaged administrative buildings and looted shops. In Limoges, a fire broke out in the city hall building. Protesters entered a municipal administration building in Marseille, while a tourist office in Lyon was set on fire.
About 410,000 people joined demonstrations across France on October 24, according to the Ministry of the Interior. Teachers, healthcare workers, firefighters, trade union representatives and other groups joined students.
The government of President Emmanuel Macron presented education measures on October 26. The package proposes limiting class sizes in some schools, funding repairs to educational institutions and reforming university admissions. The measures are estimated to cost €5 billion, but student organizations have described them as insufficient.
The planned deployment is substantial. France expects to send about 70,000 police officers and gendarmes to maintain security during demonstrations planned for October 31. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez has warned of an extremely high risk of public-order disturbances.
French trade unions have also called a nationwide strike for November 5, demanding higher wages and increased funding for public services. For residents, the disputes touch everyday costs and access to education, healthcare and other public services; strikes and demonstrations may also disrupt those services.
Why are workers striking in Italy?
Italy’s nationwide strike began on October 30, organized by the USB trade union federation. Workers, students and activists demonstrated in Rome, Milan, Naples, Turin, Venice, Palermo and other cities.
They are demanding higher wages, lower energy costs, more affordable housing and increased government spending on education and healthcare. Some protesters have also objected to rising military spending, criticizing the priorities of the budget policy pursued by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government.
The strike followed unrest in Milan on October 17–18 and clashes in Turin, Rome and Bologna. Across the protests, pressure over household expenses has converged with concerns about public funding and the cost of housing, while unions are moving from street demonstrations to further planned strikes.
France’s next planned nationwide union strike is scheduled for November 5.
