France’s student protest movement is not ending with the government’s concessions, and the Senate has now added a new element to the dispute. On October 28, the Senate passed a bill requiring protesters to pay for damage caused during unrest, according to a protest tracker updated that day. The move comes after weeks of school blockades and street marches that began in September over staffing, resources and living costs, and after the government’s October 26 education package.
That package was substantial on paper. France pledged to replace its Parcoursup university admissions platform by 2028, with clearer selection criteria and explanations for refusals from the 2027 round. It promised 15,000 additional higher education places across 2027 and 2028, student grants linked to inflation from 2027, a cap of 28 pupils on some disadvantaged high school classes, 500 new secondary teaching jobs, up to 4 billion euros in low interest loans for school renovation and 1 billion euros for universities. Teachers said the measures did not go far enough, with SNES-FSU secretary general Sophie Venetitay calling them only the beginning of a response.
Two dates on the calendar
Student leaders have vowed to keep demonstrating, with protests planned for Saturday and for November 5. That timetable matters because it turns the concessions into a test rather than a settlement. If Saturday’s turnout is large and peaceful, the government can argue its package is working while talks continue. If it is large and confrontational, the Senate’s damage bill will become the next flashpoint, with protesters arguing that liability for damage is being used to deter lawful protest, and supporters arguing that communities hit by looting and arson deserve compensation.
The background is the worst unrest in France in years on October 17, when demonstrations over school funding and living costs descended into rioting and looting, with about 2,400 people arrested. Protesters briefly stormed Marseille’s City Hall and set Limoges’ 19th century town hall ablaze, bringing down its roof and clock tower. Hundreds of thousands marched peacefully in the same period, a distinction the government itself has drawn.
A movement wider than schools
What began as a dispute over crumbling buildings, teacher shortages and the admissions platform has widened to trade unions and cost of living demonstrators. That is why an education package alone was never likely to end it. Budget Minister David Amiel has said the October 26 measures are expected to cost 5 billion euros, offset by spending cuts elsewhere, in a country under bond market pressure to reduce debt. The government therefore has little room to go further without new savings, while protesters argue the package still leaves too many classes uncapped and too few staff hired. Saturday and November 5 will show which side the street believes.
