The Latest: France's Macron vows to cut middle-class taxes

PARIS (AP) - The Latest on French President Emmanuel Macron's solutions to quell the economic anger of yellow vest protests(all times local):

6:50 p.m.

French President Emmanuel Macron has pledged to cut income taxes for middle-class workers.

Macron made the vow Thursday during a planned speech outlining his response to months of anti-government protests.

He said he wants to "cut taxes for a maximum number of citizens and especially those who are working, the middle-class."

Macron said he is considering financing the measure through cuts in public spending and making people work longer before they retire. He didn't elaborate.ˆ ˆ 

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6:35 p.m.

French President Emmanuel wants to reduce the number of lawmakers in parliament and to change the national legislature's voting system so it better reflects the diversity of France's political parties.ˆ 

Macron said Thursday during a speech planned to address the concerns raised by the anti-government yellow vest protesters: "We can improve" the parliament and make it "more efficient."

France's parliamentary election system currently is designed to give the winning party a strong majority, disadvantaging smaller parties.

Macron says he wants some of the seats in the lower house of parliament, the National Assembly, to be filled through a proportional system.

He said he also plans to make it easier for citizens to propose national referendums.

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9 a.m.

French President Emmanuel Macron is set to unveil long-awaited plans to quell five months of yellow vest protests that have damaged his presidency.

Macron will speak to the nation from the Elysee presidential palace after three months of national debate aimed at addressing the protesters' concerns through town hall meetings and collecting complaints online.

He is expected to unveil tax cuts for lower-income households and measures to boost pensions and help single parents. He may also make it easier for ordinary people to initiate local referendums.

While his promises are expected to respond to some demonstrators' grievances, other critics are likely to dismiss them as too little, too late. The protesters see the centrist Macron, a former investment banker, as leading a French government that favors the rich and want more income equality.

Many French protesters say they can't pay their bills due to the high cost of living.