PARIS, April 14 (Reuters) - Here are some of the key points in the programme of Emmanuel Macron, a centrist candidate in France's presidential election on April 23 and May 7.

Macron, a former investment banker running as an independent centrist, is favourite to win the unpredictable race in a May runoff.

Eye-catchers for voters include local housing tax exemptions worth 10 billion euros ($10.6 billion), reimbursement of the full cost of cultural shows, dentures and hearing aids, and cuts in social welfare levies for low earners coupled with tax breaks for their employers.

Flagship proposals involve the politically sensitive merger of myriad public- and private-sector retirement pension systems as well as a merger of unemployment benefit systems, which currently differ for regular wage-earners and the self-employed.

Broad financial targets include keeping France's budget deficit below the EU-mandated 3 percent of GDP, lowering the jobless rate to 7 percent by the end of his potential five-year term from around 10 percent now, an investment plan of 50 billion euros and public spending savings seen reaching 60 billion annually by the end of the mandate.

- Corporate tax would be cut from 33 to 25 percent.

- The CICE tax credit system for firms would be converted into permanent payroll tax breaks for low-wage workers.

- The 35-hour legal work week would remain but negotiation of real work hours would be left to company level.

- Low-wage earners would be exempted from certain social welfare levies, a measure that would put an extra month's wage per year in the employee's pocket.

Macron's plan calls for 50 billion euros of public investment over five years, of which:

- 15 billion on energy/environment targets: exit within 5 years from coal-based energy production, shift towards alternative, renewable energy sources, rise in carbon tax.

- 5 billion in farm sector financing for environment-friendly projects, local production cooperatives and aid during price crises.

- 5 billion for transport and local infrastructure, with a focus on renovating old train lines rather than building new ones.

- 5 billion euros on health sector, including better reimbursement of glasses, dentures and hearing aids, plus move away from wasteful medicine packages that contain more pills than a patient needs.

A target of 60 billion euros for savings on spending is so far more of a projection than a plan, premised on 10 billion euros of unemployment benefit savings generated by a drop in the jobless rate to 7 percent.

Macron also sees savings of 15 billion euros in public health spending due to greater efficiency.

Another 25 billion is predicted to come from public service modernisation, of which a small part would come from payroll cost falls due to a 120,000 cut in headcount, of which 50,000 will be in the central civil service.

The remaining 10 billion would come from cuts in local authorities spending, including a 70,000 reduction in headcount.

Build 15,000 extra prison places, hire 10,000 police, raise defence budget to 2 percent of GDP, from just under 1.8 percent in 2016. Introduction of on-the-spot fines for drug use and issue orders banning gang-leaders from certain neighbourhoods.

Halve number of early primary school pupils to 12 per class in 12,000 low-income zones, with teachers given a bonus of 3,000 euros a year to work in such areas.

All 18-year-olds to get a 500 euro "culture pass" to spend on cinema, theatre and concert tickets.

Mobile phone use to be banned on school premises for pupils aged up to about 15 years.

Strict application of secular policy in public life. No ban on Muslim veil for university students, as envisaged by some candidates.

State subsidy of 15,000 euros over 3 years for firms that hire people in 200 low-income neighbourhoods.

Reduce number of lawmakers by a third in both the Senate and National Assembly.

Reduce by at least a quarter the number of provincial local authorities.

Ban hiring of family-members as assistants of lawmakers.

Elected mandates limited to maximum three of same kind.</s>The independent centrist is hoping for big gains in Sunday’s election in a bid to avoid a subsequent run-off and second round of voting, which looks likely. And in an attempt to secure as much support as possible, he has been quietly buttering up potential allies, notably in Germany. The favourite to win the presidency has been wooing Berlin and Brussels, portraying himself as a pro-European candidate. Amid rampant Euroscepticism at home and the as-yet unknown implications of Britain leaving the EU, Mr Macron is seeking to portray himself as a president who will bring together the continent and cement the German-Franco friendship.

But he is also planning on overhauling certain aspects of the bloc - after France gets its now house in order through reforms Mr Macron is planning - such as an audit of public finances. With the UK out of the EU it leaves two of the most powerful players - France and Germany - with no choice but to work more closely together. And Mr Macron is capitalising on that, with Berlin seemingly eyeing him as their best option after conservative candidate François Fillon was embroiled in a payments scandal.

The independent candidate recently travelled to the German capital to meet with Angela Merkel, with their face-to-face cleverly documented by the pair leaving the curtains of the chancellor’s office open, allowing photographers a glimpse of the occasion. The move as viewed as the closest indicator of a formal endorsement that Berlin protocol allows. And he will need their support if he is to pursue reforms to the EU, and has been consulting with European Commissioners including Jean-Claude Juncker, Valdis Dombrovskis, Jyrki Katainen and Andrus Ansip in the run-up to the election.

Sylvie Goulard, an MEP who advises Macron on EU affairs, said: “Emmanuel is convinced that the French electorate is profoundly pro-European, despite what the populists would like us to believe. “Marine Le Pen and Jean-Luc Mélenchon want a confrontation with Germany, but they are not living in reality… Ours is the responsible choice.” And an aide to Mr Macron said: “We did our best to reassure the Germans on this point by pointing out that the candidate has the support of dozens of elected officials and a popular movement of more than 200,000 supporters.

“He will get a majority, and he will use it to carry out his plan to the letter. Remember that unlike the other candidates Emmanuel does not owe anyone favours. The 39-year-old is hoping his stance, in stark contrast to Front National leader Marine Le Pen who runs on an anti-EU anti-migration platform, will win him enough votes to take the top job.

But a run-off with the far-right leader looks inevitable following Sunday’s first round of voting. Still with an ace up his sleeve, another potential ally has come in the shape of former US president Barack Obama, who spoke with the French candidate by phone on Thursday. Despite the call being billed as not a official endorsement, it is likely to have an effect on the Frenchman’s campaign, particularly with undecided voters so close to the polls.

A spokesman for Mr Obama, Kevin Lewis, said “an endorsement was not the purpose of the call, as President Obama is not making any formal endorsement.” But the chat is in stark contrast to Mr Macron’s rival, Ms Le Pen, who has already travelled to Trump towers to hold meetings, and has met with Russian president Vladimir Putin. Mr Macron sought the call with Mr Obama, possibly to underline the different approach he is taking in comparison to Ms Le Pen.</s>THE four-candidate battle to reach the runoff in France's presidential election is putting pollsters to the test as never before.

With just a few days to go before Sunday's first round of voting, every poll for the past month has shown independent Emmanuel Macron and the</s>France's ex-prime minister Dominique de Villepin, a conservative, has thrown his weight behind the centrist candidate for the presidency, Emmanuel Macron, and not fellow right winger François Fillon.

"There is a new path, which Emmanuel Macron wants to open, and that is to unite," Villepin told Le Parisien newspaper.

He said that in the face of the traditional left-right party system that was imprisoned by its own divisions and extremes, it was an obvious choice to pick Macron.

Macron, who quit the Socialist government last year to run as an independent and created the En Marche! (Forward!) movement, has drawn support from politicians on both sides of the political spectrum and is one of the favourites to win the election.

The ex-investment banker, who has never run for elected office before, has gatecrashed the leadership contest by pitching himself as the only candidate who can overhaul France’s political system and bridge the left-right political divide.

France's scandal-plagued conservative candidate Fillon, 63, has endured a wretched campaign since he was charged over accusations he gave his wife a fake job as his parliamentary aide for which she was paid hundreds of thousands of euros.

Macron is leading in most opinion polls for the election's first round and is expected to contest a second-round run-off with far-right leader Marine Le Pen. Polls show he would easily defeat her. However, this election has proven to be almost unforecastable, and lessons have been learned about relying to heavily on opinion polls after Brexit and the election of US President Donal Trump.

Macron also spoke with former US president Barack Obama on the phone on Thursday, in an apparent sign of support just three days before the first round of the election. Obama remains a very popular figure in France, and the pro-EU centrist is the only candidate to have spoken with him.

De Villepin himself became famous globally for vocally and eloquently opposing US plans for the war in Iraq in an impassioned speech at the United Nations in 2003 when he was foreign minister. Villepin was prime minister between 2005-2007 under then president Jacques Chirac.</s>Why would millions of French people vote for a relative political novice who has never been elected? Emmanuel Macron's voters told us why in one sentence.

The 39-year-old Emmanuel Macron has come from almost nowhere, well the economy ministry to be precise, to be a frontrunner in the 2017 French presidential election.

Despite never having been elected and after only forming his own political movement, En Marche (On the move) one year ago, millions of French voters are expected to back the novice politician.

It might seem absurd, especially in France where they like their politicians to be familiar faces and preferably over at least 50, but when The Local spoke to many Macron supporters at a rally in Paris they were all convinced he was the right man to lead France.

"Macron represents the renewal of the political class. He has good proposals for Europe, he is the instigator of François Hollande's good measures," said Bilal Moudenfi, a 21-year-old delivery man in Paris.

"He is unifying and wants to rally the France of the 'winners' with peripheral France," says 33-year-old En Marche! supporter Emilie Guérel, who lives in Toulon.

"He wants to unify ideas and people," 50-year-old Carolina Delattre added.

"Macron will be a president for all the French, one who will not discriminate. His project is inclusive," said François Marien, 30, an advisor on disabilities to En Marche Inclusion.

"He can spot a good idea whether it comes from the right or the left. France has to be reformed with the French people. He defends Europe and I like that," said 17-year-old high-school student Nadim Février.

France Lacourt, a teacher, said he'd vote for Macron "because he is a centrist".

"I hope that Macron triggers a political renewal through his administration. No going backwards," said 29-year-old school worker Célia Stieb.

Gisèle Loison, a 63-year-old teacher added: "He wants to innovate, not to repair what already exists as the others suggest."

"I wish my grand-children a better political future," said 62-year-old Bernard Kervéadou.

He will actually lead

"Macron would be a president that presides, in the original meaning of the word, far from usual games among parties. Furthermore, he is the only pro-EU candidate and we need Europe," says Thomas Lajarge, 22, who studies Economics and Law.

"He is dynamic and modern," added Gregori Novak, a teacher of 42.

"He represents a new dynamic that goes beyond your usual left-right divide," 40 year old Charles Amson told The Local.

"I expect from Macron an economical program that's realistic and socially fair," said Alfred Eibenberger, 60, a scriptwriter.

"He's the one with the best economical program," added 50-year-old Anne-Cécile.

He has youth on his side (he is only 39)

"He is young. He has good ideas to make France prosper and redistribute wealth. And he stands with Europe," 58-year-old engineer Daniel Riou told The Local.

"The people surrounding him want to clean up the French political landscape - and he is young," Frank, 50, told The Local.

"I believe in young people. He showed his capacities and his determination for a change. He come to demolish political casts and show that we can make it. I read his book, 'Révolution', it makes people want to believe that things can be shaken up," said 62-year-old legal expert Jeanne-Marie Yala-Koum.

"He is the lesser evil," said Marie, 43, who works in finance.

"I can't vote yet, however we have to preserve France from the extremism of both Le Pen and Mélenchon," said 16-year-old Anaïs.

"He is very much for Europe. I took the decision to vote for him a month ago. We need more young people in politics, he can bring the necessary change," Nelly, aged 61, said.

"He's the only one who understands that we needed, not less, but more Europe”, said Alexandre Durand, 32, a law student.</s>PARIS, April 20 (Reuters) - Former Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin, a conservative Gaullist who won global celebrity by opposing U.S. plans for war in Iraq, said on Thursday he would back centrist candidate Emmanuel Macron in Sunday's presidential election.

"There is a new path, which Emmanuel Macron wants to open, and that is to unite," Villepin told Le Parisien newspaper.

He said in the face of the traditional left-right party system that was imprisoned by its own divisions and extremes that were determined to flip the table over the choice of Macron was obvious.

Villepin, prime minister between 2005-2007 under then president Jacques Chirac, is best known internationally for announcing Chirac's refusal to join a war against Saddam Hussein's Iraq in an impassioned speech at the United Nations in 2003 when he was foreign minister. (Reporting by John Irish; editing by Michel Rose)</s>But the man who could become the frontrunner for the biggest job in the country if he wins the first round of the presidential election this Sunday is also known by another name: “chouchou”. It translates as “teacher’s pet”. Aged 39 Emmanuel Macron is handsome and intelligent and as well as making political headlines is also, along with his glamorous, chic wife Brigitte Trogneux, a frequent cover star of France’s most stylish magazines. So why the nickname? It comes from the fact that wife Brigitte is not only 25 years older than Macron – but that she used to be his high-school teacher.

The pair met when Macron was 15 and a pupil at the Jésuites de la Providence school in Amiens, northern France. Madame Trogneux – then known as Brigitte Auzière – was his literature teacher and ran the theatre club. She was also a 40-year-old married mother of three – one of her daughters was even in his class. Macron quickly made an impression on his teacher. “In class she always used him as an example,” recalled a former pupil. “He wrote poems all the time and she read them out.” Romance blossomed the following year when the pair worked on a school play. “Writing brought us together,” Brigitte later said. “It unleashed an incredible closeness. We wrote and little by little I was totally charmed by his intelligence. He wasn’t like the others. “Nobody will ever know at what moment our story became a love story. That belongs to us. That is our secret.”

When the truth emerged – that he was in love with her mother – they promptly sent him to finish his studies in Paris. Before he left, he told his teacher: “You won’t get rid of me. Whatever you do, I will marry you.” He was right. The pair spoke every day on the phone and by the time he was 18, Brigitte had left her husband and took a teaching job in Paris to be with Macron. They have been together ever since and in 2007 tied the knot. At their wedding, Macron thanked her children for accepting their relationship, adding that they were “not a normal couple – but a couple that exists”.

With Brigitte by his side Macron’s political star has risen spectacularly: after making a fortune as an investment banker he joined the Socialist Party and was appointed minister of economy in 2014, before resigning last year to found En Marche! – calling for a youth-driven “democratic revolution”. But this increased profile has piqued public interest in his marriage. At 64 Brigitte has become something of a style icon. She is regularly spotted on the front row at fashion shows and with her blonde hair, deep tan, skinny leather trousers and above-the-knee dresses, she looks more like a model than a schoolteacher. French newspaper L’Express described her as “rock’n’roll”, adding: “Not for a second does she say, I cannot wear short skirts. Ultra-high heels, sleeveless dresses, leather trousers, she dares everything.”

And earlier this month Vogue magazine gushed about her “deep tan, peroxide-to-honey hairdo, expensive designer handbag and car-to-carpet heels”. But there is more to Brigitte than style. The couple have never hidden the fact that she is deeply involved in his career: Macron’s former chief of staff has recalled how during his time as a minister she would attend meetings and a recent France 3 TV documentary showed her helping him prepare key campaign speeches. Paris Match magazine declared recently: “She spends all her time beside him, she reads and listens to everything that is said about him. He asks her questions and takes her advice.” Some even say he behaves in her presence like “un petit garçon”. Macron has also insisted that if he is elected president his wife will have an official role to play in his government.

Not everyone is so enamoured of the couple, however. Although it has been pointed out that their age difference is no more remarkable than that of Donald and Melania Trump (albeit in reverse), Brigitte was recently satirised on French radio as a “menopausal Barbie” – and that “chouchou” nickname has stuck. In February their marriage was even described as a sham designed to hide the fact that Macron was having a homosexual affair with Mathieu Gallet, 40, the head of Radio France. Macron was forced to go on TV to deny it. “I am who I am,” he said. “I have never had anything to hide. I hear people saying that I have a secret life or something. It’s not nice for Brigitte. Because I share all my days and nights with her she asks me how I manage it.” For her part the woman who next month could be France’s fi rst lady is equally uncompromising about their unconventional relationship. “I’ve been involved in everything at his side for 20 years,” Brigitte told reporters in October. “You always seem surprised that spouses are beside their husbands. It’s time for things to evolve.”</s>For Macron, an independent candidate once dismissed as "populism lite" by former Prime Minister Manuel Valls, this is just the latest chapter in a remarkable story.

At the age of 39, and without the benefit of being backed by an established political party, Macron is positioned to embarrass those who poured scorn upon his ability to become a serious presidential candidate.

Francois Fillon, the Republican candidate, once said he was certain the French public would "not place their fate in the hands of a man with no experience, who had demonstrated nothing."

But that view appears to have been misplaced, especially given the way Fillon's own campaign has combusted, thanks to a scandal over claims he paid his wife and children for work they did not do.

Fillon denies any wrongdoing, but his place as frontrunner has been usurped by a man many consider to be the future of France. Part of Macron's allure is his atypical nature -- a former civil servant who became a millionaire investment banker and eventually a government minister. A candidate who has never held elected office, Macron can present himself as "anti-system" to those disaffected by the fractious nature of French politics. His private life has attracted attention too. As a 17-year-old, he told his high school teacher that, whatever else happened, he would one day marry her. He fulfilled that promise in 2007 when Brigitte Trogneux, 24 years his senior, became his wife. Born in the northern French city of Amiens, Macron studied at Paris's prestigious Lycée Henry IV before entering the Ecole National d'Administration, long a training ground for France's political elite. Appointed to a senior role in President Francois Hollande's staff in 2012 after a successful career in the banking sector, he moved into the role of economy minister two years later, replacing the more left-wing Arnaud Montebourg. But his time in office was not without controversy. His determination to push through business-friendly, liberal reforms made him unpopular on the government's own benches. With a backbench rebellion and government defeat looming, the so-called "Macron Law," which aimed to shake-up the economy through labor reform, had to be forced through the National Assembly with the help of a controversial parliamentary measure. The beginner's guide to the French elections It led to several days of protest, but also to Macron's realization that it was not just the economy that needed to change, but the system itself. Announcing his resignation in August, he explained that he had "touched with his own finger, the limits of the system," before catapulting himself into the presidential race by launching his own party, " En Marche! He has unveiled a series of business-friendly measures designed to boost France's economy, and has been vocal on the fight against terror and law and order, announcing proposals that would increase defense spending and hire more police officers. Macron's emphasis so far has been aimed at wooing Fillon voters, but he has also unveiled proposals likely to please the left too, such as his call for better pay for teachers working in poor, socially diverse areas while also urging unity at a time when France is riven with fractures. The frightening similarities between the US and French elections So far he appears to have convinced both left and right-wing voters to join him. Also, perhaps crucially, he's attracted a number of first time voters of all ages. His party, " En Marche! " which was only created in September, now has more than 200,000 members and his meetings have attracted vast crowds. With the difficulties faced by the Republican party and the leftward lurch of the Socialists, the centrist path to Elysee could be his for the taking. But Marine Le Pen, of the far-right National Front, continues to prosper, and while Macron remains an untested candidate, pollsters say the race is too close to call.</s>Former U.S. President Barack Obama has given his backing to centrist candidate Emmanuel Macron ahead of French elections this Sunday, telling the presidential hopeful to work hard until the very last minute of the campaign.

In a phone call on Thursday, posted on the Twitter feed of Macron, Obama told the presidential frontrunner: "The main message I have is to wish you all the best in the coming days and make sure that, as you said, you work hard all the way through because you never know, it might be that last day of campaigning that makes all the difference."

Macron is running as an independent in what's being described as one of the most uncertain elections in French history. Polls position him in first place but closely followed by his far-right opponent Marine Le Pen.

Aside from the vote being highly spread between all the candidates, it's also expected that about 38 percent of French voters will abstain, which increases the unpredictability of the vote.

Macron thanked Obama for taking the time to speak to him and promised to defend progressive values. Towards the end of the conversation, Obama wished Macron "good luck."</s>Former President Barack Obama waded into France’s closely watched presidential election on Thursday, offering centrist candidate Emmanuel Macron his best wishes — and even a bit of campaign advice.

In a phone call three days before France’s first round of voting, Obama stopped short of an official endorsement as he wished Macron “good luck.” Drawing on his own political expertise, he urged the upstart candidate not to take anything for granted.

“Make sure that, as you said, you work hard all the way through,” Obama said. “Because you never know, it might be that last day of campaigning that makes all the difference.”

Replied Macron, “I will do my best, believe me.” Speaking in English, he vowed to “fight to the last minute” and said he’d “keep in touch” with the former U.S. president.

Obama’s office announced the call in a short statement. It stressed that Obama wasn’t formally endorsing any candidate in the race.

But Macron’s team released a video recording on Twitter of Macron talking to Obama on speakerphone. Obama’s voice could be heard on the other end. It was a highly unusual move as conversations among politicians are usually kept private.

It was unclear if Macron received permission to release the recording of parts of the call. An Obama spokesman wouldn’t say if Obama or his aides authorized Macron to release it.

Macron faces off against anti-establishment populists and other candidates in a first-round vote Sunday. The outcome is being closely watched for signs that Europe is moving toward nationalist candidates who advocate the European Union’s dissolution. The top two candidates will progress to a winner-takes-all May 7 runoff.

A victory for Macron would be a vote of confidence in France staying in the EU. Obama, when he was in office, encouraged Britain not to leave the EU, though it ultimately voted to do so anyway.

Obama has stayed almost entirely out of public view since leaving office Jan. 20, declining to weigh in on political issues with a few exceptions. The former president has spent most of his time on a series of beachside vacations with his wife. He is also working on a book and on developing his presidential library and center.
Former French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin announces he is backing Emmanuel Macron in the election.