Article content

French President François Hollande was described as an “amateur” and compared to the emperor with no clothes Sunday as members of his party began to turn on him after his flagship 75% tax rate for France’s richest was ruled unconstitutional.

France’s Constitutional Council said on Saturday that the president’s tax on earnings of at least one-million-euros-per-year “failed to recognize equality before public burdens,” because, unlike other income taxes, it applied to individuals and not households.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or François Hollande’s 75% tax rate on the rich struck down by French court Back to video

The tax rate, due to take effect tomorrow, angered French business leaders and prompted some of the country’s wealthiest citizens to announce their intentions to leave the country.

Gerard Depardieu became the public face of the wealthy’s flight, after a row with Mr. Hollande’s prime minister, Jean-Marc Ayrault, who called the actor “pathetic” for wanting to move.

Yesterday, Mr. Depardieu said the court decision would not make him change his mind about moving to Belgium. “We’ve got to let them talk it out,” he said of France’s political leaders. “It’s all the same to me. It doesn’t change anything.”