French patients who fail to turn up to a medical appointment will be forced to pay a fine of €5. Gabriel Attal, the prime minister, unveiled the penalty as President Emmanuel Macron’s government is under orders to cut spending given a shock rise in public deficit and debt. French media has dubbed the scheme “the rabbit tax” as French for a no-show is poser un lapin. Penalising patients who fail to show up could free up to 20 million appointments a year for other patients, the prime ministe
Emmanuel Macron has urged his new cabinet to be “revolutionaries” after appointing the former partner of his new prime minister to a top role in government.