Search Statements

France's banlieues reflect decades of deliberate economic and geographic exclusion that policing cannot resolve.

Laïcité as applied in France restricts legitimate religious expression in ways that go beyond what secularism requires.

France should significantly reduce the maximum term length for local elected officials to prevent entrenched local political oligarchies.

The rise of the Rassemblement National reflects failures by mainstream parties to address real economic concerns of peripheral France.

Citizens' assemblies, as demonstrated by the Convention Citoyenne pour le Climat, should become a regular feature of French democracy.

Using Article 49.3 to bypass parliament on major legislation without a democratic emergency undermines legislative legitimacy.

France should introduce proportional representation for National Assembly elections.

The gilets jaunes movement exposed legitimate grievances about economic inequality and democratic exclusion that have not been structurally addressed.

The Fifth Republic gives the President too much power and should be reformed toward a more genuinely parliamentary model.

France should reintegrate more fully into NATO's integrated military command structure to strengthen European defence coordination.

European defence should be funded collectively through EU bonds and common procurement, not only through national defence budgets.

France's permanent UN Security Council seat carries special responsibilities it has not consistently met.

France should contribute more military equipment to Ukraine, consistent with supporting its right to self-defence.

Macron's push for EU strategic autonomy is strategically correct — Europe cannot remain indefinitely dependent on US security guarantees.

France's post-colonial military presence in Africa has done more harm than good and should be ended.

France's independent nuclear deterrent is an essential contribution to European security and should be maintained.

France should expand access to contraception and reproductive health services, which are currently underprovided in rural areas.

Waiting times in French accident and emergency departments have become unacceptably long and reflect structural workforce failures.

France should introduce a tax on ultra-processed food to address rising rates of obesity and diet-related disease.

Mental health services in France are severely underfunded relative to other comparable European countries.