Emmanuel Macron has faced humiliation today as his government lost a confidence vote, plunging France into political chaos after Prime Minister Francois Bayrou warned his peers to not make ‘the same mistake as the British’.
The French parliament voted to bring down the government today over its plans to tame its skyrocketing national debt, with the political crisis only deepening as the President now has the task of finding a fifth Prime Minister in under two years.
François Bayrou only became France’s PM nine months ago, but now, he must resign after 364 of 573 of the government’s deputies voted against the vote of confidence.
The 74-year-old centrist pledged to ‘fight like a dog’ to stay in power, but could not prevent the collapse of his government on Monday night.
As Assembly President Yaël Braun-Pivet announced the result, MPs applauded loudly and Mr Bayrou sat in silence.
‘The National Assembly has not approved the Prime Minister’s general policy statement,’ Ms Braun-Pivet said.
‘The Prime Minister now has to submit the resignation of the government to the President of the republic.’
This will happen on Tuesday, Ms Braun-Pivet added, and the current French administration will immediately dissolve.
It was the first time in the history of the Fifth Republic that an incumbent PM has lost his job in such a humiliating manner.
Only hours before, the embattled 74-year-old warned his failing country against making the same mistakes as Britain as it tried to dig itself out of a financial crisis.
He warned France could become like Britain if it taxed the rich to solve its debt crisis, saying: ‘The rich will simply move away.
‘They have numerous countries where they can find tax refuge in Europe itself, such as Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands for businesses.’
Citing UK policies as a cautionary tale, Mr Bayrou said: ‘Our British neighbours decided to tax foreigners who were exempt from taxation.
‘Those foreigners moved away, and the immediate consequence was an explosion in property prices in Milan.’
Mr Bayrou said France was in a ‘life-threatening condition’ that risked ‘enslaving our youth’ due to its mountain of debt, which is nearing 3.5trillion euros (£3trillion).
‘You can get rid of the government, but you can’t get rid of reality,’ he added.
‘France has not known a balanced budget for 51 years. Every year, debt accumulates,’ he said.
Bayrou called the vote unexpectedly in a bid to win parliamentary support for his strategy to lower a deficit that stands at nearly double the European Union’s 3 per cent ceiling and to start tackling a debt pile equivalent to 114 per cent of GDP.
However, the opposition did not rally behind his planned saving of 44billion euros (£38.17billion) in next year’s budget, as an election for Macron’s successor looms on the horizon in 2027.
Now Macron faces nominating a new Prime Minister after going through six in less than nine years.
And the President himself now faces calls for his resignation, as millions prepare to take part in strikes and street marches in a ‘Block Everything’ protest.
Macron could nominate a new politician for the role from his own centrist minority ruling group or the ranks of conservatives, but it would mean doubling down on a strategy that has failed to bring political stability.
And even if he chose a moderate socialist, or a technocrat, no scenario is likely to hand the next government a parliamentary majority.
He will name a new PM ‘in the coming days’, the presidential palace has since confirmed.
Francois Bayrou, who had called for a confidence vote, will tender his resignation Tuesday morning, his office also said.
Before the vote, Finance Minister Eric Lombard said it was inevitable that the need to form a new government would result in a dilution of the deficit reduction plan.
Macron may eventually decide the only path out of the crisis lies in calling a snap election, however so far he has resisted calls from the far-right National Rally and hard-left France Unbowed to dissolve parliament a second time.
The next government’s most pressing task will be to pass a budget – the same challenge Bayrou faced when he took office.
‘You have the power to bring down the government, but you do not have the power to erase reality,’ Bayrou told lawmakers before the confidence vote.
‘Reality will remain relentless: expenses will continue to rise, and the burden of debt, already unbearable, will grow heavier and more costly,’ he said.
During his speech, before the humiliating loss, he said France’s ‘very survival is at stake’.
However, discontent is already said to be brewing on the streets of France with a protest called ‘Bloquons Tout’ (‘Let’s Block Everything’) calling for nationwide disruption on Wednesday.
Protesters have discussed blocking trains, picketing oil refineries and walking out of major supermarkets without paying, with unions also calling for mass demonstrations on September 18.
‘France is done,’ said Mohamed, 80, a retired hospital worker who sells produce on the Aligre market in Paris.
A leaked Paris police note has also warned of potential ‘violent actions, sabotage and operations against strategic sectors of the economy’.
It could be a repeat of the Gilet Jaunes (Yellow Vests) insurrection that caused chaos towards the beginning of Macron’s administration in 2018.
In the meantime, Marine Le Pen and Jordan Bardella’s National Rally – the largest party in the National Assembly with 123 seats – believes it can achieve a workable majority with allies.
The Left, meanwhile, has formed a ‘Republican Vote’ to keep the far-Right Rally out of power.
Many have called for the deeply unpopular Emmanuel Macron to resign, but he is under no obligation to quit.
The government’s almost inevitable breakdown comes as popularity for French President Emmanuel Macron plummets to a record low, with 77 percent of the nation not approving of his work and 64 percent calling for his resignation.
Bayrou has become the second French prime minister in succession to have suffered such a fate after Michel Barnier was ejected in December after only three months in office.
Bayrou, the sixth Prime Minister under Macron since 2017, gave no indication in days of TV interviews that he expected to survive the vote.
Instead, he asked: ‘Has our country understood the seriousness of the situation it finds itself in?’
He was expected to address parliament in a final bid for support from 1pm – with the vote awaited from 5pm.
After the vote, Macron now faces one of the most critical decisions of his presidency: appointing the seventh Prime Minister of his mandate to thrash out a compromise, or call a snap election in a bid to have a more accommodating parliament.
The President is spearheading European efforts to end Russia’s war on Ukraine, boosting his international profile.
But polling at home does not make pretty reading, and he is forbidden from standing a third time in 2027.
According to a poll by Odoxa-Backbone for Le Figaro newspaper, 64 per cent of the French population want Macron to resign rather than name a new Prime Minister, a move he has explicitly ruled out.
Some 77 per cent of people do not approve of his work, Macron’s worst ever such rating, according to an Ifop poll for the Ouest-France daily.
Addressing the crisis after an international summit on Ukraine, Macron called on French political forces on Thursday to demonstrate ‘responsibility’ and ensure ‘stability’.
‘The reshaping of the world is changing many things for our Europe. In this context, France must continue to move forward,’ he said.
But alongside political upheavals, France is also facing social tension.
There is no guarantee an election would result in any improvement in the fortunes of Macron’s centre-right bloc in parliament.
But there are signs that the president could be eyeing cooperation with the Socialist Party (PS), a one-time giant of French politics that has fallen into the doldrums in recent years.
At a meeting on Tuesday of the centrist parties that support him, Macron urged them to ‘work with the Socialists’, a participant said, asking not to be named. All those present were opposed to snap elections, the person added.
Socialist leader Olivier Faure has made no secret of his readiness to take the post of Prime Minister, even producing his own draft budget.
But Socialist backing would not automatically attract support from other Left-wing forces.
‘It would be workable if the Socialist Party says: “We’re overthrowing the alliance and governing with the central bloc”,’ said a close associate of Macron, adding that for now the President is keeping his cards close to his chest.
The government’s collapse looks set to deepen France’s paralysis at a critical time for Europe, which is seeking unity in the face of Russia’s war against Ukraine, an increasingly dominant China and trade tensions with the United States.
The turmoil also threatens France’s ability to rein in its debt, with the risk of further credit downgrades looming as bond spreads – a gauge of the risk premium investors demand to hold French debt – widen.
