Riot police blast protesters with water cannons and tear gas in France.

POLICE deployed tear gas on rowdy demonstrators in a pensions reform protest in Paris on Tuesday (January 31).

Huge crowds marched through cities across France to denounce a reform that raises the retirement age by two years to 64 and which is a test of Macron's ability to push through change now that he has lost his working majority in parliament.

In Paris, marching behind banners reading "No to the reform" or "We won't give up," many said they would take to the streets as often as needed for the government to back down.

After Jan. 19 when more than a million people took to the streets on the first nationwide strike day, unions said initial data from protests across the country showed a bigger turnout.

Opinion polls show a substantial majority of the French oppose the reform, but Macron intends to stand his ground. The reform was "vital" to ensure the viability of the pension system, he said on Monday (January 30).

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