- By Kathryn Armstrong
- BBC News
March 24, 2023 at 18:22 GMT
Updated 6 minutes ago
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Macron takes off a luxury watch during the interview
French President Emmanuel Macron has been criticized after removing a luxury watch during an interview about pension changes.
France is gripped by protests and strikes over Mr Macron’s decision to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64.
Mr Macron’s representatives said the President took off the watch because it was “rattling on the table”.
But his critics have claimed the watch shows he is kept out of public contact.
Some incorrectly claimed it was worth up to €80,000 ($86,000; £70,000), but the Élysée Palace said this was incorrect.
As he laid his forearms on the table, there was a thump.
The President then placed his hands under the table as he continued to speak. When he brought her up again, the watch had been taken off.
His team insisted the removal was entirely innocent. But the missing watch quickly drew the attention of his critics.
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Now you see it… French President Emmanuel Macron took off his watch during an interview about his controversial pension changes
Clémence Guetté, MP for the left-wing opposition party La France Insoumise, takes part in the protests against the pension reform.
She tweeted that when the president claimed minimum-wage earners had unprecedented spending power, “the last picture” was him “taking off his nice luxury watch.”
“The president of the rich has never worn his name so well,” said her colleague Farida Amrani.
The watch’s exact cost has been debated online, with some of Mr Macron’s critics suggesting it was worth €80,000.
But the Élysée Palace has told French media that the President is wearing a Bell & Ross BR V1-92 model personalized with a coat of arms.
Online prices for this non-personalised watch range from €1,660 to €3,300 (£1,460 to £2,900).
“He has been wearing it very regularly for more than a year and a half,” the palace added in a statement.
Mr Macron has long been criticized by his political rivals for supporting the wealthy.
In February he was attacked for bestowing France’s highest honor on Jeff Bezos, one of the richest men in the world, while people took to the streets to protest their financial future.
Ironically, Mr Macron has sometimes referred to himself as the “lord of the watches” because he likes to set the pace of French politics.
He has argued that the retirement age changes are a “necessity” to prevent the pension budget from going into deficit.
His government last week decided to use a special constitutional power to push through the reform without a vote after realizing it would struggle to get it through the National Assembly. The move sparked two no-confidence votes, which the government survived.
The controversy has sparked renewed unrest across the country, which began in January when the plans were unveiled.
Alongside the protests were widespread strikes involving transport workers, teachers, garbage collectors and oil refinery workers.