The new poverty reduction plan is expected in mid-March

The Solidarity Pact, which aims to fight poverty, will be published in mid-March, Solidarity Minister Jean-Christophe Combe announced on Thursday.

His signing, initially announced for the end of January, is being postponed at the request of local authorities, to deepen the consultation with the associations of elected officials, he told the press.

Poor households hit by inflation

The government is leading a consultation to develop this new policy, which will take over from the Poverty Strategy launched in 2018.

This consultation focuses on four axes: prevention from childhood, the exit from poverty through work, the greatest exclusion and the impact of the ecological transition on the most disadvantaged. It will extend to the “stigmatization” of people living in poverty, announced Jean-Christophe Combe.

Associations, trade unions and poor people mentioned in particular the impact of inflation during a session of the National Council for Policies to Fight Poverty and Exclusion (CNLE) in Paris.

Inflation, at 7% for 12 months in France, especially affects poor households: it is higher for food products (+12% and even between +20 and 30% for bread, pasta, oils) and energy, restricted expenses , said Jean-Christophe Combe, who wants to improve statistical tools to better understand this impact.

15% of the population affected by poverty

Noam Léandri, president of Collectif Alerte, which brings together 34 associations fighting poverty, lamented that “the government (is) trapped in the retirement file.” “The pension reform is for 10 years from now. The fight against poverty is for the people who are having a hard time right now.”

The pension reform “creates new rights”, in particular a “minimum pension of 1,200 euros”. It is a matter of “balancing” the pension system so that “tomorrow’s retirees are not the new poor in this country”, replied Jean-Christophe Combe.

Poverty affects almost 15% of the population, according to INSEE, which defines the poverty line as a standard of living below 60% of the average standard of living of the French population.

Foreigners, single-parent families and young people are the three categories most affected by poverty, according to Noam Leandri, who expects “very favorable measures for foreigners” in the immigration law.