The approach of the municipal elections in France, in a tense economic and social climate, gives the opportunity for the many candidates to make proposals for the cities they manage or they intend to manage. But the given evaluation of these proposals rarely makes the connection with the followed policies at the national level when, in major agglomerations, they have important consequences on growth and employment. They can contribute to the achievement of the searched equilibriums or to the aggravation of the situations the State is trying to cure. But these situations are frequently, in fact, the consequence of policies ...

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INSEE has just published its first estimation of the growth rate of the French economy during the 1^st quarter. The result has been very disappointing. When the last forecasts were based on a GDP increase by 0.2% or 0.3%, production has fallen by 0.1%. It is the first diminution occurred during the last four years. It is obviously symbolic since the accuracy of the figures is not enough to talk about a real drop or even of a recession. But it constitutes a failure for the government which has considered a growth comeback as a priority ...

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Facing the social crisis, the government answers that its economic policy is the right one, that the current reforms are producing their first results and these ones are visible regarding employment and growth. It well prevents itself, to the opposite, to comment foreign exchanges numbers which remain alarming. The trade deficit excluding energy is still near 20 billion euro when the policies followed for ten years had, as an objective, to restore the French industry competitiveness. The working costs reduction and the taxes diminutions in favor of enterprises, financed by large by the budget deficit were supposed to regain market ...

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