Wishes from Emmanuel Macron: “The president must meet the expectations of the French on vaccines”

” Happy New Year and good health. » Emmanuel Macron presents his Wishes to the French, this Thursday at 19 h, at the end of a year upset by the coronavirus . The President of the Republic will have “a message of truth, of transparency over an extremely difficult year for the country”, summed up government spokesman Gabriel Attal. The Head of State should also “give perspectives on the future”, with “the arrival of vaccine ”, the economy“ which must start again ”, and a“ message of unity ”.

But in the midst of an epidemic crisis – the Covid – 20 has done more than 57. 000 dead in the country – the exercise promises to be perilous. We talk about it with Chloé Morin, political scientist at the Jean-Jaurès Foundation and former adviser in charge of public opinion in the cabinet of Prime Ministers Jean-Marc Ayrault and Manuel Valls.

After a traumatic year, on what Emmanuel Macron will- does he insist?

Vows are a delicate exercise in normal time, because it is very agreed. It is difficult to make a mark, to think outside the box. But today we are at a special moment, a turning point for the country, with the arrival of vaccines. We can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, but there is still one difficulty: some countries have boosted vaccination and France is not in the leading peloton . Emmanuel Macron must meet this expectation: what horizon does he draw for the next six months, in particular on the vaccine strategy?

Is this the time to respond to criticism of the slowness of vaccinations?

We see that the government’s responses, whether Alain Fischer [responsable de la stratégie vaccinale] or Olivier Véran [ministre de la Santé] are insufficient. I do not see how the President could not address this controversial subject this evening, even if he risks placing himself in the front line. It is up to him to explain why our country is going slower than the others, because it is the subject which occupies the opinion today.

The French have experienced a parenthesis during the holidays, with their family, but tomorrow we are preparing to switch back to a phase of greater constraints . Talking about vaccination is therefore essential. All the more so that there are many concerns in the opinion on the risks surrounding this vaccine . The president will have to deliver a reassuring speech. So far, the government has been transparent, but is very cautious about the need to be vaccinated, which may consolidate the doubts some have.

Evoking the “return of happy days”, as last June, seems difficult today …

Since the beginning of the crisis, he wanted to be the one who brings the good news. We can expect him to say “in six months or a year, we will be out of the dark period.” But Emmanuel Macron is caught between the imperative to give hope, remain optimistic, and the need to empower people, because the epidemic is not over. This balance to find is not easy. It would be amazing to promise happy days if the government reinstates in the wake of tougher health constraints . Since the beginning of the crisis, the government has oscillated on this ridge line.

He does not have much choice, the coming year is the last politically useful of the five-year term, it will be decisive for his re-election. One thing will have to be looked at closely: is he going to say that he is resuming the reforms or not? Does he consider that the end of his five-year term consists in getting out of the crisis and putting the country back on its feet, or does he wish to resume the reform movement that characterized him, at the risk of increasing social protests?

Does the televised wish ritual still have a impact on opinion?

It can have a negative impact if communication errors are made. But there is nothing to be gained insofar as the French now decipher this communication themselves.