Union leaders warn they are going to welcome monarch with a good old general strike’ on Sunday.
Striking tram drivers in France have warned King Charles III that they will refuse to take him on a tour of Bordeaux during his state visit.
“We’re going to welcome Charles III with a good old general strike,” warned Olivier Besancenot of the far-left New Anti-capitalist Party in an interview with France Info.
The King and Queen are set to arrive in Paris on Sunday to begin their first official state visit to France, which will take place amid anti-Emmanuel Macron protests. According to reports, authorities have warned the King to avoid large crowds.
When the couple moves between venues and makes the hour-long drive from Paris to Versailles on March 27, Parisians can expect major traffic disruptions, including blocked roads and long motorcades. According to BFMTV, the entire city’s public order and traffic departments have been ordered to work during the visit.
The royal couple’s security will be shared between British and French police forces.
The King and Queen will lay a wreath at the Arc de Triomphe alongside Mr. and Mrs. Macron, address members of the National Assembly, and attend the opening of an exhibit at the Musee d’Orsay during their visit to Paris. At the Château de Versailles, the French president will also host a state dinner in their honor.
The royal couple will travel by train to Bordeaux on Tuesday to inaugurate the new local British Consulate, meet members of the British community, and tour an organic vineyard.
The original Bordeaux itinerary also included a tram ride into town, followed by a stroll through town and a stop at a canelé pastry shop.
However, a local union leader has warned that protesters will likely descend on the tracks and block the tram as part of their ongoing protests against the government’s contentious pension reforms, which were passed on Monday night after the opposition failed to secure enough votes in no-confidence motions.
“It is almost certain that the King will not be able to take the tram,” Pascal Mesgueni, a CFTC union representative, warned Sud Ouest. “No one will want to drive the King.”
Since Mr. Macron forced his pension reform bill through without a vote on Thursday, protesters have taken to the streets of Bordeaux on a daily basis. The retirement age will be raised from 62 to 64 under the bill.
Another union representative told 20 Minutes that protesters planned to use the royal visit to stage “big demonstrations and big blockages” on the day the couple arrived.
The royal couple’s visit to France concludes on March 29 before they travel to Germany.
