By Frederic Cherbonnier (professor at Sciences Po Toulouse and researcher at Toulouse School of Economics)
Are we seeing a return of the traditional left-right divide, opposing on the economic level the desire to reduce inequalities to that of rewarding merit? And does this advance public debate? Let us consider for this one of the main themes of the last elections: purchasing power. We can distinguish in this theme the fight against poverty and the desire to pay more for work. It is of course somewhat caricatural to classify the first as a left-wing policy, the second as a right-wing policy, but let us stick to this reasoning at this stage.
On the first point, nearly 9 million people, or 13.6% of the French population, were in a situation of material and social deprivation in 2023. This indicator is constructed from a survey carried out across Europe, polling individuals on thirteen elements considered necessary for an acceptable standard of living (for example, being able to own two pairs of shoes in good condition). This level of poverty is very significant (twice as high as in the Nordic countries) and reducing it requires targeting the relevant categories of the population, in particular single-parent families working part-time, the long-term unemployed, and some young adults.
