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Macron says he wants to ‘p*** off’ the unvaccinated

Macron says he wants to 'p*** off' the unvaccinated 2

French President Emmanuel Macron said yesterday he wanted to ‘p*** off’ the unvaccinated by introducing fresh legislation to ban them from public venues.

The cutting remark prompted howls of condemnation from opposition rivals less than four months before the next presidential election.

Macron, 44, was responding to a nurse during a question and answer session with readers of Le Parisien when he addressed how the government will handle non-vaccinated people. 

‘By – and I’m sorry for putting it this way – by p***ing them off even more,’ Macron said. 

‘I’m generally opposed to the French being p****d off. I complain all the time about administrative blockages. But when it comes to the non-vaccinated, I’m very keen to p… them off. So we’re going to do it, the end. That’s our strategy.’ 

France last year put in place a health pass that prevents people without a PCR test or proof of vaccination from entering restaurants, cafes and other venues. 

The government wants to turn it into a vaccine passport that means only the vaccinated can have a health pass.

The legislation will remove the option of showing a negative test, effectively barring unvaccinated people from hospitality venues or trains.

The plans have faced fierce resistance from anti-vaccination campaigners and far-right and far-left groups, but is backed by the government which has a majority in parliament.

French President Emmanuel Macron said yesterday he wanted to 'p*** off' the non-vaccinated.

French President Emmanuel Macron said yesterday he wanted to ‘p*** off’ the non-vaccinated.

The plans for a vaccine pass in France have received considerable backlash from far-left and far-right groups, but the legislation is backed by the government which has a majority in parliament (protest against Covid-19 sanitary pass in Paris, August 2021)

The plans for a vaccine pass in France have received considerable backlash from far-left and far-right groups, but the legislation is backed by the government which has a majority in parliament (protest against Covid-19 sanitary pass in Paris, August 2021)

Macron says he wants to 'p*** off' the unvaccinated 3

Macron says he wants to 'p*** off' the unvaccinated 5

In a particularly snarky interview, the French president said he aims to irritate the unvaccinated into submission, rather than round them up and prosecute them. 

‘I won’t send (the unvaccinated) to prison, I won’t vaccinate by force. So we need to tell them, from Jan. 15, you won’t be able to go to the restaurant anymore, you won’t be able to down one, won’t be able to have a coffee, go to the theatre, the cinema…’

Macron’s use of a very informal French phrase, which can be translated as ‘to p*** them off’, prompted immediate criticism by rivals on social media.

‘A president shouldn’t say that,’ far right leader Marine Le Pen said on Twitter. ‘Emmanuel Macron is unworthy of his office.’ 

Until now France has enforced a COVID-19 health pass, which means in order to get into restaurants, cafes or cinemas or board trains, people need to either show a fresh negative test, or proof of vaccination.

But the new legislation to effectively ban the unvaccinated from many public venues is set to be ushered in on January 15.

French government officials yesterday vowed to enact the law as planned by mid-January despite the legislation hitting a procedural hitch in parliament overnight.

‘January 15 remains our goal,’ for the law coming into force, European Affairs Minister Clement Beaune told LCI television.

Protesters hold posters reading 'Freedom' and 'No To Health Pass' during a demonstration held last year by right-wing party 'Les Patriotes' against the COVID-19 sanitary pass which grants vaccinated individuals greater ease of access to venues in France, in Paris, France

Protesters hold posters reading ‘Freedom’ and ‘No To Health Pass’ during a demonstration held last year by right-wing party ‘Les Patriotes’ against the COVID-19 sanitary pass which grants vaccinated individuals greater ease of access to venues in France, in Paris, France

Until now France has enforced a COVID-19 health pass, which means in order to get into restaurants, cafes or cinemas or board trains, people need to either show a fresh negative test, or proof of vaccination. But the new legislation to effectively ban the unvaccinated from many public venues is set to be ushered in on January 15.

Until now France has enforced a COVID-19 health pass, which means in order to get into restaurants, cafes or cinemas or board trains, people need to either show a fresh negative test, or proof of vaccination. But the new legislation to effectively ban the unvaccinated from many public venues is set to be ushered in on January 15.

French far-right party Rassemblement National (RN) candidate for the 2022 French presidential election Marine Le Pen said of Macron's comments: 'A president shouldn't say that. Emmanuel Macron is unworthy of his office.'

French far-right party Rassemblement National (RN) candidate for the 2022 French presidential election Marine Le Pen said of Macron’s comments: ‘A president shouldn’t say that. Emmanuel Macron is unworthy of his office.’

In the detailed interview, Macron’s first in the new year, the president also said he had a good mind to run for re-election in April, but did not explicitly announce his intention to run.

‘I would like to do it,’ Macron said.

As the clear favourite in the polls, Macron has not yet officially said he was running, although his lieutenants are already preparing a campaign.

Macron also announced yesterday that France would not see fresh Covid restrictions amid a surge of new infections ahead of a government meeting today.

France registered around 270,00 new daily cases earlier on Tuesday, a new record.

The French president has been criticised in the past for off-the-cuff remarks which many French people said came across as arrogant, cutting or scornful. 

He has later expressed contrition on several occasions.

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