Cost of living protests spread across Europe

People have taken to the streets in countries across Europe, including France, Italy and Portugal, to protest over the high cost of living, inadequate public services, shortages of educational resources and government austerity measures, among other issues.

France saw one of its largest days of protest in decades on Saturday, with more than 550,000 people taking part in demonstrations nationwide, according to the French Interior Ministry. Clashes broke out in several locations as police confronted protesters.

In a televised address on Sunday, French President Emmanuel Macron said "Those who destroyed must pay. Those who looted must reimburse," pledging judicial proceedings over offenses committed during the violence.

Macron said he understood the "deep anxiety" expressed by young people in recent weeks at high schools and universities, adding that over the coming week, the government would work with students, teachers, trade unions, employers' organizations and officials to develop responses to young people's concerns.

Since September, France has witnessed multiple rounds of mass student protests demanding better educational conditions.

Beyond education, Macron said, the latest demonstrations also reflected broader public concerns over the cost of living and fuel prices. He added that the government was doing its utmost to address concerns about people’s purchasing power.

The Saturday French protest came as the proposed 2027 budget includes a 54 billion euro ($60.8 billion) package of cost-cutting and tax measures, which the government says is necessary to reduce France's deficit. The proposals include freezing the pay scale used to calculate civil servants’ basic salaries, which unions say would be the fourth consecutive annual freeze.

Emile Chabal, a professor of contemporary history at the University of Edinburgh, told Al Jazeera the Saturday demonstrations bring students’ grievances together with a nationwide public sector strike against the government’s budget plans, representing "the worst possible outcome for the French government."

Discontent beyond France

Elsewhere in Europe, protests have also highlighted mounting public frustration over living costs, education and access to basic services.

In Belgium's capital, Brussels – which has already seen weeks of protests by students against university registration fees – police fired tear gas and water cannons to disperse protesters on Saturday, whom they accused of launching missiles at them and setting fires.

Meanwhile, in the Portuguese capital of Lisbon, an estimated tens of thousands of protesters marched against the cost of living crisis, low wages and an inability to access housing in major cities.

Portuguese housing prices rose by 124% between 2015 and 2024, roughly twice as fast as the EU average, according to the European Parliament.

Elsewhere in Italy's Milan, a march against wars and rising living costs began peacefully, but masked protesters threw stones, paving blocks and other objects at riot police and set fire to barricades made from bar tables.

Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni condemned the violence. "Demonstrating is a right. Setting our cities ablaze is not,” she wrote on X, blaming "hooligans who exploit demonstrations to sow chaos."

Milan's centre-left mayor, Giuseppe Sala, said "the reasons for the protests were understandable. The violence against law enforcement and serious damage to the city are not justifiable."

More protests may lie ahead

Although protests in the other countries did not reach the same scale as the rallies in France, they may be a sign of discontent spilling over, Alberto Alemanno, professor of EU law and policy at HEC Paris Business School, told Al Jazeera.

Alemanno said Saturday’s protests may not be the last in many of these countries and new hotspots could emerge.

In Greece, Germany and Austria, the "early stages" of a movement are emerging, with mobilization expected "in the coming week," he said.

They are not a single movement, he explained, but several protests happening at the same time, with some "shared grievances": underfunded education, rising living costs and, for students, uncertain prospects after graduation.

(With input from agencies)