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France
Institutions
France is a republican, democratic, secular state whose motto is “Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité”.
The constitution of the 4th October 1958 of the 5th Republic governs the running of the institutions. Thus, the constitutional body – “Le conseil Constitutionnel” stands as guarantor for the constitution.
The President:
The President of the Republic, the Head of the State and the army, who is elected for 5 years by direct universal suffrage, selects the Prime Minister and through him the members of government. The French president presides over the Council of ministers and promulgates laws. He can also dissolve the National Assembly and in a serious crisis can use special powers.
The Prime Minister:
He directs the government and ensures law enforcement. Under his direction, the government determines and leads the politics of the Nation, remaining at all times accountable to Parliament.
The Parlement:
The Parliament is made up of 2 assemblies: Le Sénat (House of Lords) and l’Assemblée Nationale (House of commons). The 2 assemblies in addition to their role of controlling the government, also propose and vote in laws. For this reason and in the case of a disagreement, the National Assembly rules definitively.
Belonging to the European Union, France acknowledges the role of European Institutions ( European Commission, European Parliament and European Council) and includes European decisions into its way of working.
Organisation of territory
The French territory includes the metropolis, the 4 French oversees departments ( Guadeloupe, Martinique, Guyana and the Reunion), the 4 oversees territories (French Polynesia, New Caledonia, Wallis and Futuna, the French South and North poles) as well as collective territories with a special status: Mayotte and St Pierre et Miquelon.
In terms of local power, 3 levels of collective territory overlap each other with distinct jurisdictions.
The communes (towns):
36,763 communes, smaller administrative subdivisions, carry out local jurisdictions such as the construction of schools, town planning, social services, collection of household rubbish and sanitation.
The departments:
The departments, (96 plus 4 oversees) created by the revolution in 1789, have considerable jurisdiction in terms of social services, construction and maintenance of schools, roads etc
The regions:
The regions (26 of which 4 are oversees), more recent authorities whose area of jurisdiction is continually growing, run policies centred on economic development, vocational training and town and country planning.
The legal system
Guardian of the freedom of the individual (article 66 of the constitution), the French legal system is organised according to a fundamental distinction between on the one hand the civil courts who deal with personal disputes, and on the other hand the administrative courts for disputes between citizens and public bodies or between 2 public bodies.
Foreign policy
France is particularly attached to its independence but at the same time doesn't exclude solidarity. France therefore, carries out its responsibilities resulting from its international status, either as a permanent member of the Security Council of the United Nations or as a member of organisations like OECD, The International Energy Agency, the OMC or the EBRD.
France, who is a founding member of the European Union, also wishes to continue to promote European construction in a way that will guarantee the security and prosperity of the continent. France also belongs to the Euro zone since 1st January 1999
Social Security System
In terms of social security, France has one of the most effective systems in the world. The French are particularly attached to it especially the health system. Spending is allocated as follows:
27.2% is spent of health, 49.2% on retirement, 12.8 % on family policy and 8.4% on unemployment benefits. All these benefits are financed by the contribution of the work force. However, this system has its structural difficulties caused by an increased life expectancy, coupled with the fact that young people start work later because of studying and lastly a stagnation of the length of working life. To prevent the system going bankrupt several projects are planned.
Approaching France
Entité
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