What the bill would do

The senate will this week debate the government's proposed 'vandals pay' bill, which has been fast-tracked through parliament amid a month of high-school blockades and union-led street protests across France.

The core of the legislation is a collective liability rule:

• A protester could be ordered to pay up to €10,000 for damage and vandalism committed at a demonstration even if they did not directly cause it, provided they were demonstrating nearby or as part of the same group as those responsible.
• The bill also provides for greater use of drones flying over protests.

Trade unions accuse President Emmanuel Macron of using the fast-track procedure to curb the fundamental French right to protest, a right long seen as a basic way for citizens to make themselves heard by a centralised state.

Why the government says it is needed

Prime minister Sébastien Lecornu has defended the bill as "absolutely essential". It was originally prepared after violent clashes broke out in May following Paris Saint-Germain's Champions League victory over Arsenal.

The government's case rests on one of France's worst days of violence in years earlier this month, when largely peaceful demonstrations were marred by looting, fires and vandalism of state buildings. Authorities responded by increasing security measures and placing restrictions on demonstrating.

Opponents warn demonstrations could end

Critics on the left, in the unions and in civil society argue that the €10,000 liability would deter people from marching at all. Éric Coquerel of La France Insoumise said the law "would mean the end of street demonstrations", because no one would risk paying for vandalism they had not committed.

Communist senator Fabien Gay told Public Sénat: "No demonstration could take place again in our country."

In an open letter to Le Monde, leftwing trade unions and France's Human Rights League wrote that the law "should be abandoned, or risk a major step back for the rule of law".

Protests and a tightening climate

The bill arrives during more than a month of blockades by high-school students, who are demanding a response to teacher absences, repairs to decrepit buildings and changes to the university applications platform. Unions and gilets jaunes protesters are now marching alongside them, in a social crisis that also covers the cost of living and public services.

Weekend marches saw demonstrators denounce Macron's decisions to outlaw non-union protests his government labelled "illegitimate" and to push marchers away from city centres.

Although Macron has not declared a state of emergency, the government and local authorities have imposed:

• bans on gatherings in front of schools and on demonstrating in city centres
• curfews in some places
• extended police custody for the record number of people arrested

The National Rally has claimed the 'vandals pay' bill was originally its idea. Marine Le Pen launched her presidential campaign on Sunday at a rally in Orléans, promising to "bring back order to France".

Addressing a cheering crowd of more than 8,000 people, she said: "Vandals will pay and if it takes their whole life to pay, then they will spend their whole life paying."

Her frontrunner status in next spring's presidential election has been boosted as she reinforces her law-and-order credentials, with Macron leaving office next spring.

Prime minister Sébastien Lecornu will meet representatives of the protesting high-schoolers on Monday, as the government comes under pressure to respond with funding and school repairs to head off further blockades.