The French president, Emmanuel Macron, is facing a people's revolt against plans to give his wife an official "first lady" role. More than 150,000 people have signed a petition against the move that would give Brigitte Macron an office, staff and an allowance from the public purse.
The rebellion comes as Macron's popularity continues to plummet. Polls last month showed he had dropped seven percentage points with only 36% of French people saying they were happy with their new leader. At the same period in their mandate Macron's predecessors François Hollande and Nicolas Sarkozy were at 56% at 66% respectively.
During his presidential campaign, Macron promised to "clarify" the role of the French president's wife by giving them an official status, describing the current situation as a "kind of French hypocrisy".
"I would like a defined framework and I will ask for the subject to be worked on," he said at the time. "The person living with you should be able to have a role and be recognised for that role."
Neither the French constitution nor accepted protocol gives the president's partner an official status, leaving them to create a role as they see fit. They are allowed an office, staff, security guards paid for out of the Elysée budget and estimated by the official auditors at about €450,000 (£406,000) a year. Creating an official title would create a separate budget for the president's partner. The plan has struck a particularly discordant note in France coming as Macron prepares to force his "morality" law, banning parliamentarians from employing wives and family members.
The artist and author Thierry Paul Valette, who is behind the petition, said: "There is no reason why the wife of the head of state should be given a budget out of public funds. At present, Brigitte Macron has two or three assistants as well as two secretaries and two security staff, and that's enough."
Valette said any decision should be made by referendum and not presidential decree.