Analyse and assess the role played by the French state in securing the social and economic achievements of the period known as ‘les trente glorieues’ after the Second World War.

Intro: Nostaligia for the period, success

Nationalisation- state control
Money goes back to government to redistribute in order to benefit the people
Reduce the competition by being in control of
Reunalt- get rid of influence of foreign powers
Banque de France- take into state control after wall street crash, depression- exploitative free market compared to regulations- can control interest rates- manipulate for the well-being of the people- control tariff of imports/ exports- promote foreign businesses
Edf and gdf- public utilities, prevent monopoly
1986- privatisation- don’t have the money- cut backs- austerity politics

Modernisation- delay, need to rebuild
Move of workers to towns- social problems
TGV
Nuclear power plants
Independence from America- plan calcul 1966- general electric, American corporation own 50% shares and American wont export their products to France- they don’t want them to perfect their H-bomb
Elf-acquitaine

Economy
Joining the euro- lose control, free floating- able to adapt to changing market- no longer able to revalue currency 1981 francois Mitterrand
Had to give back 220 million euro subsidy from SNCM and couldn’t do anything about 7,000 redundancies
Champions nationaux- direct money to particular aspects to build up
Le commissariat general du plan- state employees in charge of economy- where to invest
More efficient – missions de productivite- taylorism, Fordism- worries over destruction of French culture- la coca-colonisation

Education and jobs
Welfare provisions
Job security- hard to get jobs, 65-70 benefit, high youth unemployment 27% in comparison to 12% USA
Universal education
1950s people forced to stay in school longer
1949- 100,000 attended uni, 1969- 600,000- need more technologically complex students- overcrowded, poor facilities- cant handle influx- 1960s odd and even weeks
35 heures intended to create jobs however companies less likely to hire people- cant fire due to strict regulations feminisation of the workplace