The Angers unemployment rate, for the first time, above the French one

The news will probably harden the exchanges between candidates to the electoral campaign but, above all, worry the inhabitants who have a job or are looking for a job, the companies which have local consumers and the territorial authorities whose revenues are threatened by the economic crisis. Apparently, that one is far from being over in the Angers region. According to the last survey of the Maison de l'emploi d'Angers, the unemployment figures have severely worsened in the area. For the first time, the unemployment rate exceeded the national rate : while the French rate was 10.5% in the second trimester, the Angers rate was 10.6%.

But that news is maybe not the most worrying. During the twelve months before July 2013, the number of unemployed persons increased in the Angers Loire Métropole area by 10.8%. At that period, more than 16 500 persons were out of job in the Angers territory.

Of course, such a trend should trigger debates and accusations among candidates to the municipal elections and their assistants as the late exchange between Daniel Loiseau (supporter of Frédéric Béatse) and Emmanuel Capus (supporter of Christophe Béchu). The unemployment issue, because it has moreover a national extent, could weigh heavily in the outcome of local elections, even if mayors are far from having the power and the resources to fight the plague of unemployment.

Laurent Gérault's candidacy weakened by the withdrawal of two important supporters

Laurent Gérault

Things are getting much more complicated than predicted for Laurent Gérault, town councillor excluded by the minority side of the city council, who, as delegate of the Union des démocrates indépendants (Udi), is candidate to the Angers municipal elections. Two of his most important supporters, Dominique Richard, former member of parliament and Jeanne Robinson-Behre, first deputy mayor of Avrillé and regional councillor, have decided to withdraw from the list Mr. Gérault is about to constitute. The first had already announced his decision ten days ago, the second has just made up her mind.

Dominique Richard

Both of them have decided to join Christophe Béchu, the Union pour une majorité populaire candidate and main challenger of Frédéric Béatse, Parti socialiste, current Angers mayor. Mr. Béchu's candidacy is of course strengthened by these two stepping-down which could be changed in an official support, Mrs Robinson-Behre being due to meet soon Ump candidate. The centrist family Mr. Gérault is a member had itself been weakened by the different rallyings decided by the Mouvement democrate (Modem) and the Parti radical, both led by Bernard Dupré and Daniel Dimicoli, minority town councillors, in favor of Mr. Béchu while the Udi was in favor of Mr Gérault.

Jeanne Robinson-Behre

Was that evolution foreseen by Jean-Luc Rotureau, leftist main challenger of Mr. Béatse, when, a few days ago, he $ announced he will gather in his list people having good ideas "wherever they come from". The defections of Mrs Robinson-Behre and Mr Richard could made difficult the presence of Mr. Gérault for the second round of municipal elections for lack of getting more than 10% of voters. A refusal to consider Mr. Rotureau's offer will lead him to surrender to Christophe Béchu.

Angers mayor and inhabitants will talk about urban environment

Credit pictures : Angers city

The "participatory democracy", an idea implemented for years in Angers, could meet in the days to come a special interest from the candi-dates to the 2014 muni-cipal elections. On November 26th, the 2nd edition of the annual conference about the "community urban management" will gather inhabitants and associations who, throughout the city, worked during the last 12 months about the ways to improve daily life in its different districts. The results of their meetings will give important indications about the wishes of inhabitants and voters. So the Angers mayor, Frédéric Béatse, will be present.

In each of the 10 Angers districts, people and local town councillors, among other participants, studied projects which had to be implemented and their results. The next meeting will especially look into the speed limit (30 km/h) which is compulsory to respect or the urban cleanliness and maybe the safety in town.

If economy and employment are at the top of priorities for inhabitants and candidates, the improvement of the daily life in town is something people care about. Group of inhabitants, and among them retail stores owners, complained about the conditions of streets and pavements, the nocturnal turmoil in streets of down town or the design of the Ralliement square. The New banks of Maine scheme confirmed the interest of people about their environment. That one is surely one of the assets Angers should rely on in order to increase its attractiveness.

The main candidates send their aides to fight on the economy field

The recent proposals of Christophe Béchu about the ways to boost the local economy are the field of a

Credit : Angers Développement

quarrel with the current majority of the Angers Loire Métropole (Alm) and Angers city councils. After the Union pour un mouve-ment populaire (Ump) candidate announced his first ideas from his new committee room located in Voltaire streeet last November 14th, Daniel Loiseau, deputy chairman in charge of economy at Alm, claimed that several of those ideas were already implemented and that nothing was new. Emmanuel Capus, minority town councillor, answered in his turn to Mr. Loiseau who "did with the autosuggestion method an official speech which must not mislead anyone".

Credit : Angers Développement

If the majority doesn't express criticism about Mr. Béchu's proposals to welcome poten-tial investors in Angers and even says there is agreement about the idea to sell regularly part of the Angers real estate assets, it nevertheless points out that many aspects (like the last one) of his platform are not new. "The sponsoring of young project planners by active managers" as well as "the ability of the city to test new products manufactured in Angers" are not something innovative, says Mr Loiseau. The stance of that one led Mr. Capus to react : "If every-thing is already implemented, why the unemployment figures are rising, why youngs are leaving the city to find jobs somewhere else, why down town store owners complain about the lack of support of the city council".

Emmanuel Capus

Daniel Loiseau

Beyond the mutual accusations, it is clear that investments, attracti-veness, economy and employment are key questions for candidates as for many inhabitants. But the com-mon risk to such politician exchan-ges is to locate the candidates programs below the Angevins' expectations and the necessities of the circumstances. There are many ideas but, until now, few come from the people, as economic agents. 

Jean-Luc Rotureau's campaign livens up and leaves room for alliances

Jean-Luc Rotureau doesn't want to be outdistanced in the electoral campaign for the municipal elections due to take place at the end of March 2014. In the next days, 80 000 copies of a letter he wrote to the Angevins will be distributed. The text is at the same time a critic against candidates who consider policy is a way of carreer and an openess to possible alliances with candidates whose opinions and projects match his own ones. And Laurent Gérault could be the main addressee of such a letter.

" My sensitivity and my itinerary are leftist. Nevertheless, my thoughtful belief is that the management of a city needs to look for good ideas wherever they come from, with pragmatism and common sense, without sectarism", writes Mr. Rotureau who plans to unveil a list "in the months to come" probably because he knows very well that the electoral campaign is far from being over. Some of the opinions the candidate develops look to be close of those of Mr. Gérault regarding, specifically, the promise he will not increase local taxes which could restrain the households' resources.

If Jean-Luc Rotureau doesn't detail what includes the words "by other means" ("autrement") which were the headline of his campaign, he comes back once again about the way "the Angers mayor office and the city have been kidnapped". Well aware about the polarizatrion of the campaign in favour of Frédéric Béatse and Christophe Béchu, Mr. Rotureau would gain weight through an alliance with Mr Gérault. That one could be a way to weigh "by other means"' on the outcome of the elections.

A former Angers decision center "in the corner"

It looks like a joke but it wasn't. An Angers real estate agency, Rousseau Immobilière Comine, has just published on the website Le bon coin an offer about the sale of the former headquarter of the Banque populaire Anjou-Vendée (Bpav). That bank, famous in Maine-et-Loire for its involvement in the financing of little and medium private companies, and the first Banque populaire ever created in France (1878), has been merged about 15 years ago with another subisidiary of the group Banque populaire established in Nantes. The two subsidiaries of Angers and Nantes gave way to the Banque populaire Atlantique whose headquarter is in Nantes. So 7 600 m2 of offices are useless in Angers. Formerly full of employees, the building is for sale. 

That news illustrates once again the leak of headquarters from Angers and the concentration of places of decisions and power outside the city and specifically in Nantes, the capital of the Pays de la Loire region, what indicates that the cooperation between cities for a balanced development has progress to achieve. But it is above all the topic of the decrease in attrac-tiveness of the town which could so resurface during the electoral campaign. 

The case of the former Bpav is not isolated. A lot of industrial and commercial surfaces are currently unoccupied in Angers like the Technicolor one. But, while Technicolor was part of the industry, the Banque populaire is part of the services. That sector gives jobs to a lot of people in the city and is not sheltered from relocation. Recently, it was feared that Stream, a call center, was on the verge to close his offices in Angers and to transfer them abroad. The issue of economy and unemployment, which is already at the top of the concerns of Angers inhabitants, and candidates, will be dealt through a lot of approaches : transports, housings for workers but also favourable conditions, both fiscal and administrative, for companies. Apparently, even regional institutions are not convinced of the interest to keep a high profile in Angers. 

Angers centrists at the core of divisions

Laurent Gérault, the centrist candidate to the 2014 municipal elections doesn't give up. After he was criticized last week by the Angers sections of the Mouvement démocrate (Modem) and the Parti radical which both choose to join Christophe Béchu, Union pour un mouvement populaire (Ump), Mr Gérault nevertheless got the support of several, but rather little centrist movements. The Alliance centriste, the Convention démocrate, the Fédération européenne démocrate, the Nouveau centre and the Parti libéral démocrate, all of them are members of the Union des démocrates indépendants (Udi), the parti Mr. Gérault is the delegate in Maine-et-Loire.

For the centrists, the main problem is the division of their family. That one is illustrated in Angers by the respective choices of the Modem and the Udi regarding the municipal elections, the first supporting Christophe Béchu and the second having choosen Laurent Gérault as candidate. Even if Mr Gérault unveiled some of the main principals of his municipal policy if he is elected, these difficult conditions could make difficult the writing of detailed proposals something more complicated.

This division between Modem and Udi in Maine-et-Loire looks to be specific and contrary to the union these two movements recently built at the national level under the title L'alternative. Until now, nothing has been done locally which would allow a better understading between the tow centrist components. But things may change towards improvement or deterioration. Currently, centrists are far from being central in the Angers political landscape.

Christophe Béchu stresses his economic commitments

Christophe Béchu's committee room on voltaire street

Few by few, the candi-dates to the Angers mayor office get organized and start to unveil their proposals about the means they would use, once elected, to strenghen the city. After he opened his committee room, on Voltaire street, Christophe Béchu has introduced two of his fellow candidates : Catherine Leblanc and Jean-Pierre Bernheim. The first, dean of the Ecole supérieure des sciences commerciales d'Angers (Essca) would be in charge of the "standing of the city", a kind of foreign affairs secretary. It is likely Mrs Leblanc will implement a "marketing oriented" approach. The second, manager of Vaslin-Bucher until the end of the current year, will bring to Mr. Béchu his knowledge of the private companies and will be entrusted with the economical development of the town.

One of his opponents, Jean-Luc Rotureau, also announced the arrival in his team of a former deputy-mayor,Christian Cazauba, who is in charge of the Madeleine-Saint-Léonard-Justices district and of Philippe Lahournat, town councillor, both of them coming from the town council majority led by Frédéric Béatse. The first will deal with the financial aspects of Mr. Rotureau's campaign.

Catherine Leblanc (credit Essca)

The econo-mical issues will be a top priority of Christophe Béchu who considered on his web-site that Angers city didn't do what had to be done to win competitiveness. In that field, the arrival of Mrs Leblanc could be useful because the candidate wants to boost employment thanks to students already present in town and to help the local companies to go on foreign markets. Through those two nominations, Mr. Béchu introduces economy in the remits of the city itself what was, untli now, an issue implemented by Angers Loire Métropole. So future antagonisms between the two auhorities about economy could surge after the elections.

Demonstration against racism and for secularism

More than 1 500 people gathered on November 11th on Leclerc square to express their condemnation of the racist insults pronounced last month against the justice minister, Christiane Taubira, when she visited Angers. If those people, coming from all political horizons, were legitimately affected by the seriousness of that misconduct and the deplorable fame that event gave to Angers, the nightly destruction of a tree of secularism, planted in Lorraine sqaure in 2012, has added to their worries. 

After that symbolic tree, set up there last year, was beheaded, Mr. Béatse, "given the circumstances", had not ruled out that such destruction be the fact of people having "ulterior motives" : i.e. people being hostile to the concept of separation between the state and the religions. Even if respect of races and respect of religious ideas are not the same concepts, two serious offenses have taken place in the city. 

If the refusal of a person, because of what that person is, constitutes an offense, the denial of the right to criticize religious ideas is also a insult. If a new tree is something necessary, seeds of tolerance in minds of people are also essential.

The first world war written out in full letters

Hundreds of Angevins gathered on November 11th in Leclerc square to comme-morate the anniversary of the end of the first world war. Under the grey and wet sky, the Angers public communed with soldiers of the conflict, through the letters these sent to their families, letters read by pupils of some of the city schools. One of them, wrote by Jacques Pineau, a corporal of the French army, entrusted with liaisons missions, told about one century later, the horrors of which he was the witness.

Born in La Pommeraye, Jacques Pineau was sent to the front, in the Haute-Marne, from the beginning of the war. There, he wrote to his family dozens of letters about his daily "life". If the reading of a single extract by a child made (unvoluntary) disappear the emotional dimension of the letter (because it's not easy to speak in public), the texts were really for the attendance an historic lecture about the world war because many of the sufferings soldiers endured have, for a long time, disappeared from teaching books.

It is sure through that story, about a soldier and from a soldier, is able to bring closer that generation of 14-18 and their des-cendants. Jacques Pineau's experience is even very contemporay because he tells in his letters how he managed to avoid to watch the execution of two deserters who, in the years to come, could be exculpated from what was, then, a crime. Corporal Jacques Pineau was killed in June 1915.

Laurent Gérault and Jean Luc Rotureau' s candidacies : first distant, then maybe convergent

Laurent Gérault

Twenty four hours after it was announced, the Laurent Gérault's candidacy to Angers mayor office has triggered a lot of criticisms from the political movements close to his own party, the Union des démocrates indépendants (Udi). The Mouvement démocrate (Modem), the Parti radical, themselves members of the minority group in the Angers city council, as Mr. Gérault, bluntly expressed they were against his project of a list which could affect those of Christophe Béchu, Union pour un mouvement populaire (Ump), the main challenger of Frédéric Béatse, Parti socialiste, current Angers mayor.

If such critics don't appear to weaken the will of Mr. Gérault to involve himseil in the campaign, and be present for the second round, they neverthless cast a doubt about his capacity to get at least 10% of the votes. So that could drive him to ally with Jean-Luc Rotureau, himself candidate to Angers mayor office, against Mr. Béatse, of whom he was the deputy mayor, Mr. Rotureau having chances to overcome the 10% threshold in order to compete for the second round. The reaction of Mr. Gérault after Mr. Rotureau made public his decision to run for Angers mayor office was rather friendly. 

Jean-Luc Rotureau

The two candidates never criticize each other and even have, in their respective platforms, some points of conver-gence. These are visible in facilites schemes like the building of only the half of the second tramway line, the postponement of the iceskating and some structural changes in relationships between departments of Angers city, Angers Loire Développement or even those of the Conseil général de Maine-et-Loire. From an arithmetical point of view, those candidates would have interest to be allied. But each said that electoral considerations were not sufficient to constitute a policy.

Poverty gains power

The next municipal elections will take place with, in the background, an increase of poverty in Angers what points out that, more than ever, the economic recovery and the jobs it may generate, must be at the core of the policies candidates must have in mind. In two years (2010-2012), the number of angevins households increased from roughly 13 000 to 14 000, what is equivalent to 7%.

The proportion of inhabitants living under the threshold of poverty (i.e. with a revenue of 803 euros per month and per capita) is close to 20% of the city population (19%). In 2010, that rate was already of 17% when it was of 15% in France acccording to a survey shown to the city council last year.

Such an increase concerns first of all the youngs (people between 15 and 29 years)  and the poor workers of Angers. From a geographical point of view, the city disctricts most affected by poverty are Monplaisir (34% of its inhabitants live under the poverty threshold), then Belle-Beille (26%), Les Hauts-de-Saint-Aubin (24%), La Roseraie (23%). The others districts (Lac de Maine, Madeleine, Justices, Saint-Léonard, centre ville and La Doutre) record rates equal or under 15%.

The median revenue of inhabitants is 1 451 euros (i.e. 50% of the Angevins are above it and 50% are under it), while is in France 1 562 euros. According to the same parameter, young Angevins earn 1 110 euros per month while elders (between 60 and 74 years) earn 1 730 euros per month. But, less than 20% of Angers inhabitants are elder and more than 31% are young.

Municipal elections : trilaterally can't be ruled out

From the strategies of Angers political parties, four months and a half before the municipal elections, it is possible to forecast that the second round may be very open. According to the regulations, every list of candidates having got at least 10% of the votes is able to keep going for that second round. In Angers, many alliances may be possible which would give choice to voters between three lists after the first round.

Given Frédéric Béatse, current Angers mayors, has got the support of Europe-Ecologie-Les verts and the
Parti communiste, he will certainly be present for the second round. It is also very likely that Christophe Béchu, president of the Conseil général de Maine-et-Loire and his main challenger, will also be present on the second round. But these could not be alone because Jean-Luc Rotureau and now Laurent Gérault are themselves candidates to Angers mayor office and will not be there only to show their faces. Even alone, each of them could get results exceeding the 10% threshold.

Another player, the Front de gauche, has recently toughly criticized the alliance between the communists and socialists in Angers. Such a stance may not predict that he will support Mr. Béatse for the second round. For the two main contenders, Mr. Béatse and Mr. Béchu, an additional difficulty would come from an alliance between Mr. Gérault and Mr. Rotureau.

If the Angers city council would get nevertheless a clear majority (because the winner of the election gets the half of the seats, the other half being shared by all the lists competing for the second round), that one could be weakened by a trilaterally.

Left and right leaders repudiate the insults uttered to the justice minister in Angers

Credit pictures : Facebook page La manif pour tous

The case of the insults uttered against Christiane Taubira, justice minister, when she was in Angers on October 25th, is still making waves. In town hall, Frédéric Béatse, Angers mayor, was due, through a letter to Mrs Taubira, to apologize on behalf the city : "Those toughen behaviours do not match in no way the tempered nature of our city where debates sometimes liven up but always keep a respectful tone towards individuals. The huge majority of Angevins was particularly shocked with the misconduct of those persons in minority who understood nothing to the history and the trend of our society".

As a result, the Angers section of the Ligue des droits de l'homme called for a demonstration on November 11th against racism in front of the justice hall. For the movement, the insults uttered by children, in their parent's company, against Mrs Taubira because she is black, "are a serious fact, in addition to a serie of similar events which every month punctuate the news". The national leaders of La manif pour tous, which took the initiative of that demonstration, have blamed those words and called for "the respect towards everyone".

The case triggered a local polemic between left and right given that one of the supporters of Christophe Béchu, candidate to Angers mayor office, was among the demonstrators. Mr Béchu said the fact one of his supporters took part, or not, in the demonstration would not change its opinion about the case : "This is absolutely shocking, unacceptable, inexcusable and untenable. Nothing, in a democracy or a republic, can justify that. My repudiation is total and absolute".

The Udi Laurent Gérault will run for Angers mayor office challenging Christophe Béchu

Frédéric Béatse (credit FB blog)

About four months and a half before the 2014 municipal elections, political alliances, on the left and the right sides, are taking shape. While the Angers section of the Parti commu-niste made official on November 7th, its choice to run for Frédéric Béatse, current mayor and candidate for a new term, the local Union des démocrates et indé-pendants (Udi) announced that it will have its own candidate to the Angers mayor office. Laurent Gérault, Maine-et-Loire delegate of that party and minority town councillor is said he will make up a list.

Christophe Béchu (credit angersbechu.fr)

If that news looks unfavourable for the opposition candidate to the Angers municipal elections, Christophe Béchu, that one has not, for all that, lost his political assets. First, Mr. Béchu had already got the support of the Angers delegation of the Mouvement démocrate (Modem). Secondly, two rounds will be necessary to choose the winner and, for all we know, the conser-vative candidate, Christophe Béchu, should get more bulletins than Laurent Gérault. So, logically, that one should call his supporters to give their voices to Mr. Béchu. But it is not sure.

Laurent Gérault

On the left side, the rallying of the communists to socialists is a good news for Mr. Béatse, weakened, for the the first run, by the candidacy of Jean-Luc Rotureau, his former deputy-mayor. Once again, logically, the supporters of Mr. Rotureau should vote for the current mayor for the second round. But, as for the Udi menbers with Mr Béchu, will they do so with Mr. Béatse? It is not sure. A third option would consist in Laurent Gérault and Jean-Luc Rotureau alliance.

For the Parti communiste, that union may give him, in case of Mr. Béatse's victory, seats in city council, a première for 30 years after it had been ousted by the former mayor, Jean Monnier. But probably, there are Angers sections of Modem and Udi which are in the most critical position while their national leaders, François Bayrou and Jean-Louis Borloo, have recently decided to unite ther forces in a new mouvement L'alternative. In Angers, with a Modem pro-Béchu and a Udi against him, the Alternative doesn't look very clear.

The electoral campaign gains in hardness

The documents about the next municipal elections which were at the agenda of the last meeting of the city council on October 4th give to the inhabitants an overview of the supposed strenghts and weaknesses of the main candidates and the topics which will be in the core of the public debate. According to the analysts of Euro Rscg, one of the largest integrated marketing communication agencies in the world, the debate will be dominated by the battle between Frédéric Béatse and Christophe Béchu (what is not really a scoop). The agency remarks that the national results of the socialist policy could hamper the position of the current mayor.

Each of the candidates has its "plus" and "less". Mr. Béchu can bet on his "perceived dynamism",  his "competence" but is also seen as a "person always running for offices" and "his capacity to change the favourite balances of the population thouroughly social democrat". On the other side, Mr. Béatse is credit of an "ability to listen" and "to federate energies" but has to work on his "charism".

Another society Conseils, analyses et perspectives (Cap) points out that if the inhabitants are confident in the assets of their town, a wide majority thinks that there is a risk Angers looses its jobs and that the economic development should be a top-priority in the years to come (what is neither a scoop). A good point is granted to the current mayor about the management of the financial resources and Mr. Béatse should continue a direct dialog whit inhabitants, especially on the issue of the new school schedules which failed to win unanimous support.

These studies and others triggered a fierce debate among town councillors, the minority considering those are part of electoral and not municipal expenses.

Electoral topics : the answers are in the questions

Few by few, questions asked by Angers inhabitants to Christophe Béchu are piling up. If some of them are mainly politician, most of them are related to the daily life in town or to the future of that one. If the answers of Mr. Béchu may interest the people who asked the questions, they are also an indication about the concerns of Angers inhabitants. Three kinds of topics, until now, are emerging.

The most numerous are related to Angers itself and express an expectation about what could be done by the future city council whatever be his political direction : the Ralliement square (Mr. Béchu would like it as the symbol of the vegetable vocation of Angers), the traffic by bikes which could be improved (Christophe Béchu promises an inventory of fixtures and to work on the safety aspect of cyclable lanes), the relations between townhall and Angers retail store owners, the closure of the Gaumont Variétés... A lot of topics may point out the wish of a more enlived downtown and are often connected (like the access to the centre by bikers and drivers).

Others issues reflect concerns which are quite national like the fiscal pressure, the possible rising-up of the Front national (on which the candidate says the responsability is common to left and right parties) and the opening of stores on Sundays (Mr. Béchu says, like Frédérique Béatse, he is favourable to the opening of retails stores before end of year Sundays but is less open-minded to the opening of superstores on Sundays). The politician questions are the less numerous but the candidate doesn't avoid them. That formula of exchanges between the candidate and inhabitants looks to match their wishes of direct dialog with candidates.

An unfortunate publicity for Angers after racist insults to the black justice minister

A mobile phone video recorded by a simple pedestrian walking near Angers justice hall on October 25th where supporters of the mouvement La manif pour tous were gathered was broadcasted by local then national medias. According to that video, the minister of justice, Christiane Taubira, was indeed victim of racist insults shouted by Angers children and their parents in spite of the denegations expressed by officials of La manif pour tous and the Front national Maine-et-Loire delegate, present on the scene.

Many French medias having territorial and national audience, as well as others abroad, dedicated coverages to that topic in which Angers is, unfortunately, associated with details about that insane misconduct. Mrs Taubira who came in Angers to visit new facilities inside the justice hall, was also caught by the Angers lawyers about the scheme of a new prison. Those issues were, of course, completely overshadowed by the behaviour of the persons gathered by La manif pour tous, a movement hostile to the openess of the marriage to persons of the same sex even if that measure is now legal.

That event was mentioned in the national assembly and triggered numerous fierce - and justified - disapprovals. The american Mail online reported the case and pointed out the insults were due because of Mrs Taubira is black. It is sure the city didn't want to see its name associated to such shameful misconduct.

All Saints Day : Crisis Anthem

The economic crisis has an impact on the All Saints Day and on the funeral business. According to profes-sionals, the expenses dedicated by families for their relatives who passed away have lowered and the sell of chrysanthemum is also declining. In fact, the attention persons dedicated formerly to their relatives is now less important than it was. People are maybe more self-centred and less wealthy what, given the economic situation, is rather understandable.

The time for graves made of marble and granite is perhaps "passing away". The mood is rather on little and collective monuments where only memorial stones are set up for members of a family. Angers city itself promotes for environmental reasons cementaries having the look of gardens like those which exist in English speaking countries with their graves dispatched in lawns planted of trees and bushes. By itself, such a  mood is in accordance with the French public opinion which is always looking for equality in life. Why that goal would not be sought out for the deads.

Credit pictures : Angers city

The chrysan-themum producers of the Angers area also make a long face. Their turnover has declined this year and the All Saints Day is one of the most impor-tant event for their business. And the trend in favor of natural gardens could not be a favourable element. 

All Saints Day : family outings... at the superstore

Are the Angevins schizophrenic or is there a split between what their represen-tatives at city council or at the board of Angers Loire Métropole think about the opening of stores on Sundays and no working days and what they really think them-selves? If there is uncertainty about which is the relevant question, there is no doubt about their common answer which is, clearly : yes. On November 1st All Saints Day, when French pay tribute to their relatives who passed away, the supermarket of Les Banchais district, was overcrowded.

The parking lots were full of cars and some of them were even parked on the greens because of the lack of available spots. And inside the supermarket prevailed a hectic atmosphere. Given that the Super U had to close at 12.30 pm, the access to stocks was closed and an employee, rather tall, was explaining to the customers that he could not let people come in because that would make impossible for the store to close at the scheduled time. "There is no more bread", explained that one to a woman visibly angry by the situation while the sixteen checkout assistants had, each of them, to deal with the purchases of customers standing in line on 15 meters in the middle of the rows, many of them with trolleys full of items...


It was as if the store planned to close for a month even if, in fact, it was just closed for the afternoon and once again opened on the following day! It 's sure that the raining weather which prevailed over the city that day wasn't very propicious to open air leisures. But it is clear that going to stores in family is clearly a leisure, alas or not, for many inhabitants. Those one have got the products they needed. The employees have worked and been paid. The turnover of the store will allow public authorities to get revenues through taxes. The debate about the opening of stores on no working days is far from to be dead.