French President Emmanuel Macron said in a televised address on Thursday evening that he will finish his five-year mandate which ends in 2027 despite pressure for him to resign amid the fall of the government. The government was toppled Wednesday after the parliament gave a no-confidence vote in Prime Minister Michel Barnier.
It marks the first time a French government has been voted down by parliament in more than 60 years, since the defeat for Georges Pompidou’s government in 1962.
The worst enemies in French politics, Marine Le Pen’s far right and the leftist New Popular Front – who nevertheless share a penchant for populism — came together to prompt the fall of Barnier’s government after he used special powers to force through an austerity budget for next year without a vote. A total of 331 voted in support of the motion, exceeding the 288 required for it to pass.
The government “has been censured,” said Macron, “for the first time this has happened in 60 years, because the far right and the far left have united in an anti-republican front. I will never assume the irresponsibility of others, and in particular of the members of parliament who consciously chose to bring down the budget and government of France just a few days before Christmas,” said Macron.
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Barnier, a former Brexit negotiator appointed Prime Minister three months ago, submitted his resignation on Thursday. The shortest-lived of the Fifth Republic, Barnier’s government was created in the aftermath of snap parliamentary elections. These were called by Macron who decided to dissolve the lower Parliament following the European elections which saw the far-right party Rassemblement National gain historic grounds and dominate by a landslide.
While the leftist coalition Nouveau Front Populaire (including the radical left party La France Insoumise) surprisingly scored more seats than the far right, no political party come close to a majority in the second round of the parliamentary elections. Yet, the appointment of Barnier, a renowned conservative figure belonging to the Republican party, sparked uproar within the left-wing political class who accused Macron of being undemocratic and disregarding the result of the parliamentary ballots. France’s current political chaos is a reflection of how fragmented the national assembly has emerged in the wake of these elections.
The country is also facing a budget deficit of €157.39 billion as of October. As such, Barnier’s unpopular budget included €60 billion in deficit reduction.
“I will entrust (this new Prime Minister) with the task of forming a government of general interest, representing all the political forces of an ark of government that can participate in it, or at the very least not censure it,” said Macron, who added that the Prime Minister’s “priority will be the budget.”
Macron, who deemed the vote of no-confidence “censorship,” said a temporary bill will be tabled in parliament before mid-December in order to “ensure the continuity of public services and the life of the country, as required by our Constitution.”
“This exceptional bill will allow for the decisions taken in 2024 to be applied in 2025,” he said, adding that he’s “counting on a majority to adopt it in Parliament.” He also expects the new government to prepare a new budget at the start of 2025.