King Charles’ visit to France cancelled amid threats, protests

London: The King’s historic first state visit has been postponed amid escalating violent protests against French President Emmanuel Macron’s pension reforms.

Charles III’s trip to Paris and Bordeaux was to begin on Sunday, but both cities have been rocked by some of the worst violence since the protests started in January.

The union-led protests are in response to a new law to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64. The change would accelerate a planned increase in the number of working years required to draw a full pension.

Macron asked for the visit to be postponed as the prospect of him dining alongside the royals at a lavish banquet while his country burned became increasingly untenable.

A police intelligence agency report said “hate messages” had been circulating on social media in connection with the visit, along with calls to “spoil” the occasion.

Graffiti left in Paris during Thursday’s march read: “Charles III do you know the guillotine?”

Firefighters in Paris put out a fire that was lit during protests against the French government’s retirement bill.Credit: AP

The eleventh hour cancellation was taken by the French and British governments “after a telephone exchange” between Macron and the King on Friday morning (UK time), noting a new day of mass strikes and protests had been planned for Tuesday.

It was also to include a parade on the Champs-Elysees with a 140 horse-mounted Republican guards and a trip to Bordeaux.

The German leg of the visit – Charles’ first overseas visit as monarch – will go ahead as scheduled.

Buckingham Palace, the UK royals’ official residence, confirmed that the visit by the King and his wife Camilla, Queen Consort, had been “postponed”. “Their majesties greatly look forward to the opportunity to visit France as soon as dates can be found,” the palace said.

The delay is an embarrassing setback for Macron, who has staked his reformist credentials in his second term on raising the retirement age in the face of widespread opposition.

While Paris has seen increasingly violent protests in recent weeks, demonstrations in Bordeaux had been relatively peaceful until the entrance to the city’s town hall was set on fire on Thursday night.

The past seven nights have seen demonstrations in Paris and other cities with rubbish bins set ablaze and clashes with police.

Macron told a news conference in Brussels on Friday it would have been “a lack of common sense” to carry on with the state visit in the middle of the demonstrations.

The King, then known as Prince Charles, welcomed French President Emmanuel Macron to Clarence House in London in June 18, 2020.Credit: AP

He reiterated his defence of the pensions overhaul, and said France and the government needed to move on with other reforms as well.

“We must continue to advance. Our country cannot stand still,” he said.

Macron’s aides were reportedly concerned that the occasion would be used by his opponents to criticise what they claim to be his monarchical approach to the presidency.

The reception for the King and Camilla, Queen Consort in Chateau de Versailles had been denounced by activists as an insult to striking workers who are seeking to force Macron to back down over pension reforms.

Versailles, when it was still a royal palace, was invaded by a mob during the 1789-90 French Revolution when King Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette, his wife, were forced to move to central Paris. They were guillotined four years later after a failed attempt to flee the capital.

The statement said the president’s office intended, with Buckingham Palace, to reschedule the visit “as soon as possible” and under “conditions which correspond to our relationship of friendship”.

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