RPT-French government abandons fuel tax - PM

PARIS - 5 December 2018: The French government is abandoning a fuel tax hike that was previously only suspended for six months following violent protests, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe told lawmakers on Wednesday.

"The government is ready for dialogue and is showing it because this tax increase has been dropped from the 2019 budget bill," he told the lower house of parliament.

The government had earlier on Wednesday said it would not change the version of the budget bill currently at the Senate, which had dropped the fuel tax increase.

While Philippe made it clear in parliament that it would not be in the budget bill, he did not say whether it would be later included during the course of 2019 in a budget update.