Reader Q&A: what’s next for France? Ask our Europe columnists

Guardian Europe columnists Rokhaya Diallo and Alexander Hurst will be live taking questions from readers about the riots and protests in France at 3pm BST / 4pm CEST today. Send your questions by email now to conversations@theguardian.com or join the discussion in the comments no

Guardian Europe columnists Rokhaya Diallo and Alexander Hurst will be live taking questions from readers about the riots and protests in France at 3pm BST / 4pm CEST today. Send your questions by email now to conversations@theguardian.com or join the discussion in the comments now After weeks of protests and a weekend of riots in which a town hall was set ablaze, 2,000-plus shops were looted, 2,300 people were arrested and 1,000 police injured, the repercussions for France – for its society and its economy – continue. Allegations of police brutality surfaced, and the violent protests unnerved investors, resulting in a debt sell-off , with borrowing costs rising higher than for Greece.

All of this ahead of a hotly contested presidential election that’s now just six months away. The French government’s escalating financial problems were covered by the Guardian’s Europe correspondent Jon Henley who wrote: “France’s national debt, at 119% of GDP, is at its highest level since 1946 . Its budget deficit, at 5.1%, is also among the highest in the EU.

There is just no money in the bank to ease the cost of living squeeze that brought 550,000 people on to the streets on Saturday.” Continue reading...