French prime minister ousted following vote of no confidence

By avagrace // 2024-12-08

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French Prime Minister Michel Barnier has been ousted following a vote of no confidence. This came after a momentary alliance of convenience between the country's left-wing coalition and the conservatives. Following the results of France's snap legislative election this past summer, the liberal centrist government of President Emmanuel Macron was left governing with a minority presence in the National Assembly, with the left-wing New Popular Front (NFP) coalition having more seats, and the right-wing National Rally of Marine Le Pen as the single largest party in parliament. (Related: France's conservative National Rally party drops to third place in latest legislative elections after leftist coalition and Macron's liberal party form alliance.) Meaning, Macron's allies in the country's legislature, led by his liberal centrist Ensemble party, could be toppled by a majority vote through a simple vote of no confidence unless he decided to create an alliance with either the left-wing or the conservatives of Le Pen's National Rally. Macron chose neither, and instead appointed Michel Barnier as prime minister and created a minority governing coalition with several moderate conservative parties. Barnier's government was appointed on Sept. 5, two months after the snap legislative election and after Macron rejected appeals from the NFP for him to appoint a moderate leftist prime minister who can govern with the support of the liberals. Three months later, on Dec. 4, this same left-wing coalition brought forward a motion of no confidence against Barnier's government following disagreements regarding the French government's budget for the 2025 fiscal year. Barnier was unable to garner the support of a majority of parliamentarians to pass the country's budget. His main proposal involved raising 60 billion euros ($64 billion) through a combination of spending cuts and tax increases, neither of which appealed to the left-wing nor the National Rally, respectively.

Barnier resigns a day after the vote

Seeing no alternatives, Barnier pushed through a financing bill for the country's welfare programs using the "commitment of responsibility" clause in Article 49.3 of the French Constitution, which allowed the government to force through legislation without a vote in parliament. This sent both the National Rally and the NFP off the edge, and both blocs intended to move forward their own motions of no confidence. For the no confidence motion to pass, it needed the support of at least half of the National Assembly's 577 parliamentarians. The 190 members of the NFP were supported by Le Pen's 123 parliamentarians in the National Rally, along with 18 votes from other legislators. A total of 331 lawmakers, or a clear majority, voted in favor of toppling Barnier's government. With a growing public deficit and uncertainty over how a 2025 budget can be decided upon, Barnier formally resigned from his post as prime minister a day after the vote, making him the shortest-serving prime minister since 1958. "It is now up to you, as a parliamentarian of the nation, to decide whether to equip our country with responsible financial laws that are indispensable and useful. Or, if we are entering uncharted territory," said Barnier. Due to French law, no new parliamentary elections can be called before July 2025, or a year after the end of the previous election. This leaves Macron with a difficult decision over who he will appoint as prime minister, and whether he will once again try to govern on his own or form an alliance with the left-wing or the conservatives. Watch this video of political commentator Alex Christoforou discussing the downfall of Macron's liberal government. This video is from the Oldyoti's Home Page channel on Brighteon.com.

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Barnier resigns a day after the vote

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