In an interview given to Elle magazine, on newsstands Wednesday May 8, Emmanuel Macron covered various social issues linked in particular to women’s rights and sexual violence. He also provided details on the future “birth leave” or on how to improve access to medically assisted procreation (MAP). Themes considered important for the female electorate.
A possible “visiting duty” for fathers. Emmanuel Macron suggests opening a “debate” on the establishment of a possible “visiting duty” for fathers in single-parent families, mainly the responsibility of women. “I want us to be able to open this debate, which is basically both a debate on parenthood and a debate on equality between women and men, which is that of establishing a visiting duty, a duty support until adulthood, of children”, affirms the president in a short video published by Elle on her Instagram account.
“When there is a father, he must exercise all his duties and the mother, when she is in this situation, can demand regular visits,” adds the Head of State, referring to the need for fathers participate, for example, in parent-teacher meetings and are “stakeholders” in the child’s education. He considers that “including for the child, it is better. Because a child who never sees his father is a child who feels abandoned” and “whose emotional and educational development is not not the same”.
On the future “birth leave”. The head of state did not escape questions about the government’s “birth leave” project, which aims to replace the current parental leave. Concretely, the president wants it “shorter and better paid”. Emmanuel Macron speaks of a leave which will take the following form: “Three months for mothers, three months for fathers, cumulative during the child’s first year.” They will be compensated “up to 50% of salary” up to 1,900 euros, i.e. the Social Security ceiling. Concerning the calendar, “birth leave” will be put in place at the end of 2025 and “is added to paternity and maternity leave”, specifies Emmanuel Macron.
The Depardieu case. Emmanuel Macron assures that there was “no complacency” towards the actor Gérard Depardieu, claiming to have “never defended an aggressor in the face of victims”. Gérard Depardieu will be tried next October in Paris for sexual assault on two women during filming in 2021. He has also been indicted since 2020 for rape and sexual assault on a young actress, Charlotte Arnould. Several other complaints have been filed against the 75-year-old actor, who denies the facts with which he is accused. At the end of December, before the actor was summoned to court, Emmanuel Macron defended the actor, hailing a “huge actor” who “makes France proud”, and denouncing “a manhunt”.
Plan against infertility. Emmanuel Macron also specified his vast plan against infertility which will begin with a complete assessment for everyone around the age of 20. The Head of State mentioned this plan to boost the birth rate during a press conference on January 16. “Every woman must freely dispose of her body. But one figure concerns me: the fertility rate is 1.8 and the rate of desire for children is 2.3,” he said. in the women’s magazine. The Head of State specified that his plan to combat infertility would revolve around “prevention”, “pathway” and “research”. He thus states that a “fertility check-up”, around the age of 20, would be offered to everyone and reimbursed by health insurance in order to “establish a complete assessment, spectrogram, (or) ovarian reserve” .
PMA and GPA. On the French president’s “to do list”, we also find improving access to medically assisted procreation (MAP). To reduce waiting times to access it – currently 16 to 24 months – Emmanuel Macron intends to “open up oocyte self-preservation to private centers” which was “until now reserved for hospitals”.
On the other hand, the Head of State renews his opposition to surrogacy (GPA). “I repeat, I am not in favor of it. It is not compatible with the dignity of women, it is a form of commodification of their bodies,” he insists. “That said, I obviously think that parents of children born through surrogacy abroad must be respected and supported. They are loving families,” he adds.
A recurring subject of political discord, GPA resurfaced in the news at the end of April with a tweet from Marion Maréchal. The head of the Reconquest list in the European elections reacted to the announcement of the paternity of fashion designer Simon Porte Jacquemus and her husband with a message asking “where is the mother?”. “I was shocked by the way this controversy arose, and by what it says about the homophobia of certain French political parties,” said Emmanuel Macron.
On menopause. The President of the Republic indicated a parliamentary mission on menopause, in order to take stock of current care […] and the difficulties encountered by women in terms of information and follow-up.” “Today, many women think that treatments are not suitable. I would like to obtain clear recommendations,” continued Emmanuel Macron.