Fears over a 90% wealth tax could see France’s super-rich leave the country after political gains by a Left-wing alliance, it emerged yesterday, writes Vanessa Allen.
Threats of a tax-and-spend economic policy have prompted a huge influx of calls to financial advisers from high earners and investors seeking to move their money out of France.
The Left-wing New Popular Front (NFP) alliance was the surprise winner in the weekend’s elections, following fears that Marine Le Pen’s National Rally (RN) would sweep to power.
Jean-Luc Melenchon, whose hard-Left France Unbowed party is the largest in the NFP, said its victory would usher in a radical tax-and-spend programme, despite it falling short of an outright majority in the National Assembly.
The result has left President Macron with a political deadlock as parties scramble to broker deals.
The leftist coalition’s three main parties – the hard-left France Unbowed, the Socialists and the Greens – have started negotiations to find a candidate for prime minister.
The coalition called on Mr Macron to “immediately turn to the New Popular Front” and allow it to form a government.
Mr Melenchon said an NFP government should implement its programme, which includes a 14% rise in the minimum wage, a pay rise for the public sector and lowering the retirement age from 64 to 60.
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Speaking ahead of Sunday’s result, Parisian wealth adviser Gregory Soudjoukdjian told the Financial Times: “I’m not sure I’ve had this many calls since the start of my career…
“Our high-end clientele are asking themselves a lot of questions.
“The question we get asked most frequently is if money is safe in France.”
Vincent Lazimi, a partner at Paris law firm Jeantet, told the newspaper: “People are worried about a wealth tax, the end of the flat tax and potential higher taxation on salaries, as well as an overall atmosphere that is not pro-business.”
Meanwhile, prosecutors have opened an investigation into alleged illegal financing by Ms Le Pen and her RN party.
Photo: Jean Luc Mélenchon, leader of the left wing coalition Popular Front (Front Populaire). (Photo by Pierre Crom/Getty Images)
