France: One-euro meals for students
Since Monday, students in France have been able to buy meals in university canteens for just 1 euro, regardless of their financial situation. This was previously only available for students on scholarships and those from disadvantaged backgrounds. Student organisations have long been calling for such a measure. Now, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu's government has allocated 50 million euros to the scheme. Is it fair?
Significant relief
News website Liberal praises the French government's decision:
“Rising prices are a state of emergency that will not disappear even after the war in Iran ends. ... The French initiative is a significant step towards easing the financial burden on young people. There is a big difference between paying 30 euros a month for food and paying 150 or 300 euros. Not to mention that France also has student accommodation, which helps to address the acute housing problem.”
Ultimately destructive and unfair
The measure is particularly harmful to socially disadvantaged students, warns L'Opinion:
“It may seem generous at first glance, but in practice it is destructive and, ultimately, unfair. There is no reason to celebrate the pseudo-social progress represented by the blanket introduction of 1-euro meals. ... The outcome is already clear: a fiasco. This measure, with its whiff of populism, will weaken the very people it purports to protect: students who are dependent on government assistance. ... The consequences of this artificial generosity are well known. Firstly: shortages. ... Secondly: long queues. ... Thirdly: a decline in the quality of service. Fourthly: a paradoxical redistribution of wealth in favour of those who are more affluent.”