The gap between public perception and reality in France

The latest Cevipof survey shows that the majority of public opinion in France rejects capitalism and openness to the world, and calls for protectionism. The mechanism that public opinion seems to have in mind is as follows: capitalism leads to globalisation, and thus to demand for competitiveness and to falling wages; a different way of thinking is therefore needed to increase wages. The problem is that the reality in France is very far from public perception: Globalisation accounts for only a small part of the manufacturing job losses; Despite capitalism and globalisation, in France there has been an increase in the wage share of national income and in the generosity of social welfare, and the level of redistributive policies is very high. Protectionism would therefore not improve income distribution or the social welfare system, but it would reduce purchasing power. However, the perception of the majority of public opinion is very different .