Will be we bidding adieu to French President Emmanuel Macron this week? It seems highly plausible after his Prime Minister Michel Barnier faces not one, but two calls for a no-confidence vote.
The move comes after Barnier, the former Brexit negotiator, decided to use special powers to force the social security budget through the lower house of parliament without a vote. This, in turn, triggered the far-right and left-wing parties to submit no-confidence motions on Monday, which could take place as early as Wednesday (December 4).
Here’s a closer look at what exactly happened and what could happen next.
Why is Barnier facing a no-confidence motion?
On Monday, French PM Michel Barnier used a constitutional measure, Article 49.3, to push the government’s proposed social security budget without a vote. This budget includes €60 billion of tax increases and spending cuts to cut the French deficit, which is dangerously high. Using the measure, Barnier said he was forced to do so after negotiations with both the hard Right — National Rally party (RN) of Marine Le Pen and the Left — New Popular Front (NFP) had failed.
Incidentally, this Article 49.3 has been used by Macron in the past — in 2023, to push the deeply unpopular reform of raising the French retirement age.
However, this move by Barnier resulted in both the Left and the Right parties submitting no-confidence motions. Marine Le Pen of the far-right National Rally (RN) said, “The French have had enough. We are proposing a motion of no confidence against the government.”
Content retrieved from: https://www.firstpost.com/explainers/french-government-michel-barnier-no-confidence-motion-emmanuel-macron-13840987.html.
