French Prime Minister to halt fuel tax rise amid violent protests

France’s embroiled government is set to back down today over a planned fuel tax rise which has prompted widespread protests and violent demonstrations across the country.

According to local media Prime Minister Edouard Phillipe is set to pull the plug on proposed diesel tax hikes in an attempt to de-escalate current tensions between President Emmanuel Macron’s administration and protesters.

Paris has been plunged into civil unrest in the last week with “gilets jaunes” (yellow vests) demonstrations causing major damage to iconic monuments such as the Arc de Triomphe.

Late last night protesters from the “gilet jaunes” pulled out of a meeting with Phillipe that was scheduled for today, with some members saying that they had received death threats from hardline demonstrations who warned them not to enter negotiations.

Earlier this week Macron, who has accused his political opponents of hijacking the protests in order to block his reform programme, held emergency talks with police and security officials after surveying the damage across the capital.

More than a quarter of a million protesters have taken to the streets in recent days, amid anger over the the rising price of diesel, which has soared 23 per cent over the past year to its highest point in almost two decades.

Macron’s government, which has hiked its hydrocarbon tax this year by 7.6 cents per litre on diesel and 3.9 cents on petrol, has said that more taxes on fossil fuels were needed to fund renewable energy investments.

Yet while the demonstration began as a protest against a rise in duties on diesel, the revolt has spiralled into a larger range of issues surrounding anger at Macron’s administration.