French parliament set to oust prime minister in blow to Macron
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French PM Francois Bayrou is set to be ousted in a confidence vote, deepening the political crisis and presenting President Macron with a critical decision.
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French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou and French President Emmanuel Macron during a commemoration of the Charlie Hebdo attack, January 7, 2025 (AP)
France's parliament is expected to oust Prime Minister Francois Bayrou on Monday, ending his term after just nine months in office, which plunges the key EU member into new political uncertainty and creates a painful dilemma for President Emmanuel Macron.
The French prime minister blindsided even his allies by calling a confidence vote to end a months-long standoff over his austerity budget, a plan that foresees almost 44 billion euros ($52 billion) of cost savings to reduce France's debt pile.
Opposition parties across the board have made it clear they will vote against his minority government, a stance that makes it highly improbable he will get enough backing to survive because he needs a majority of the 577 MPs in the National Assembly.
Bayrou will become the second French prime minister in succession to have suffered such a fate, following Michel Barnier, who was ejected in December after only three months in office.
Bayrou, the sixth prime minister under Macron since 2017, has not indicated in days of TV interviews that he expects to survive the vote, and, instead, he asked, "Has our country understood the seriousness of the situation it finds itself in?"
Between a rock and a hard place
This puts Macron at the most critical juncture of his presidency, appointing a seventh prime minister to negotiate a compromise or call snap elections to prop himself up and obtain a more accommodating parliament.
Macron is on the front pages of the international front after spearheading Europe's efforts to end the war in Ukraine; however, on his home front, polls foretell a disaster for the French president, who is forbidden from standing a third time in 2027.
According to a poll by Odoxa-Backbone for Le Figaro newspaper, 64% of the French want Macron to resign rather than name a new prime minister, a move he has explicitly ruled out. Some 77 percent of people do not approve of his work, which is Macron's worst-ever such rating, according to an Ifop poll for the Ouest-France daily.
A left-wing collective calling itself "Block Everything" is calling for a day of action on September 10, and trade unions have urged workers to strike on September 18.
Unexpected alliances affect elections
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 former powerhouse in French politics whose influence has significantly waned in recent years.
At a meeting of the centrist parties that support him on Tuesday, Macron urged them to "work with the Socialists," said a participant, who asked to remain anonymous, adding that all those present were opposed to snap elections.
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.
