France is facing another crisis as the government may fall tomorrow, even before it completes 3 months in power. The French government collapsed after far-right and left-wing parties submitted a vote of no confidence against Michel Barnier(current prime minister). Michel Barnier faces a no-confidence vote, it is a vote that he is likely to lose. So France could be without a proper head of government yet again. It’s a political mess.
French Government Collapse – Why is this happening
- Barnier has held various high-ranking positions in France including minister for the environment, minister of European affairs and minister of foreign affairs. He is a member of the Republicans a central right political party in France. After the 2024 elections, a divided parliament emerged as complex and unstable. However, this happened because Michel Barnier tried to push through a new budget without letting parliament vote on it this angered both the left-wing and right-wing lawmakers, and both sides came together to remove him, though they didn’t agree on much else. They are angry that he used a constitutional clause to pass a contentious budget without parliament’s approval. Barnier introduced a district budget with 60 billion in spending cuts and tax increases to reduce France’s debt.
- He bypassed the parliament to push it through using special powers which angered lawmakers. Both the far-right party led by Marine Le Pen and the left-wing alliance opposed the budget calling it unfair, telling the United to remove Michel Barnier. The French parliament’s lower house which is the national assembly passed a vote of no-confidence and Barnier had to resign, this vote showed that lawmakers didn’t trust him to let the government. Michel Barnier the prime minister courtesy of President Emmanuel Macron, called for SNAP elections in June and since then there has been uncertainty this is not the only problem that he is dealing with there are strikes and protests, nationwide tax strikes, farmer protests, government workers strike and even energy sector strike. It seems every part of the French society is protesting and now the government is about to shut down as well. As Paris gears up to host world leaders for the reopening of the notam cathedral.
- Macron’s Dilemma – Macron a president now has to find a new prime minister have is tough because parliament is very divided there is a far-right group led by Marine la Pen, A left-wing coalition called the New Popular Front, Macron’s centrist allies, who don’t have enough power to control Parliament alone. Since the group has a majority it’s hard to agree on who the next prime minister should be.
- However, the government will still function for basic services but no new laws can be passed until there is a new prime minister. Macro must find someone who can survive parliament scrutiny but finding such a person will be very challenging. If Macron doesn’t stabilize the government political and economic problems could worsen. French President Emmanuel Macron must appoint a new prime minister quickly to stabilize the government until then bar near mistake temporarily as a caretaker to handle day-to-day duties.
France’s Economic Struggles
Budget Deficits and Rising Debt: The collapse of Prime Minister Michael bBarnear the government has thrown France into a period of political and economic conservatism. Due to this, the country faces significant challenges in terms of governance and economic recovery. Even French President Emmanuel Macron’s popularity has declined some are calling for his resignation however Macron made it clear that he will not step down, despite the political chaos.
