Confidence lost: the French government will resign for the first time since 1962
On Wednesday evening, December 4, the French national assembly passed a resolution of no confidence in the cabinet of Prime Minister Michel Barnier. He has only been in office for three months and tendered his resignation on Thursday. He will remain in office until a new prime minister is appointed. The reason for the resignation was the fact that Barnier passed the social sections of the state budget for 2025 bypassing parliament. Read more about what happened, as well as possible outcomes - in the material "Izvestia".
Vote of no confidence in the Cabinet of Barnier: reasons, results
On Wednesday, December 4, it became known that the National Assembly of France voted for the resignation of the government of the current Prime Minister Michel Barnier. On Thursday, Barnier submitted his resignation petition to Macron, he will stay in office until the appointment of a new Prime Minister. French leader Emmanuel Macron accepted the petition.
This decision was made after the cabinet took advantage of Article 49 part 3 of the French Constitution and adopted the social part of the state budget without a vote in parliament.
French political analyst Emmanuel Leroy said that the draft budget proposed by Barnier was "totally unrealistic". Its essence was to tax France's working and middle classes while preserving the financial security of the richest segments of the population.
Thus, the French opposition accused the Prime Minister of pursuing an anti-social policy. In particular, the former leader of the right-wing party "National Union" Marine Le Pen said that such a policy of the authorities forced her party to join the extreme left, which first advocated the resignation of the Prime Minister.
The motion for a vote of no confidence was put forward by the left-wing New Popular Front coalition. 331 deputies voted in favor (it was necessary to get the votes of at least 289 deputies out of 577). Thus, the term of Barnier's government became the shortest in the history of the Fifth Republic.
The Fifth Republic - a period in France from 1958 to the present, it began with the adoption of the current Constitution of the country. In contrast to the basic law of the Fourth Republic, the new main document of the country gave broad powers to the head of the executive power (president) and turned France into a republic of presidential type.
Following the vote of no confidence, the 73-year-old Barnier is expected to resign. At noon, France's BFM TV reported that the prime minister had already arrived at the Elysee Palace.
Appointment of the new Prime Minister of France: when, who will become him
At the moment it is known that French President Emmanuel Macron will address the citizens in the evening of December 5 against the background of the resignation of the current government.
In addition, the French media reminded that the President together with the Prime Minister should participate in the opening of the Cathedral of Our Lady of Paris, restored after the fire, which is scheduled forDecember 7-8. Presumably, a new prime minister could be appointed by next weekend.
It is not yet known who Macron will appoint, but the population polls show to whom the French are loyal. Thus, by the level of support among the citizens of the country is leading the head of the right-wing "National Union" Jordaan Bardella. The poll was conducted by CNews TV channel together with Europe 1 radio station and Journal Du Dimanche. Bardella is favored by 15% of those polled. It is important to note that among citizens between 18 and 24 years old, his level of support reaches already 30%.
He is followed by former Prime Minister Bernard Cazneuve and civil servant Lucie Caste. Approximately 5% of respondents were in favor of both. Possible contenders include current Armed Forces Minister Sebastien Lecornu and Interior Minister Bruno Retallo.
Emmanuel Le Roy also observed that at the moment there is no suitable candidate in France who could "unite people and defend the Macron regime".
Reaction to the resignation of the Barnier government
By this hour, many politicians have spoken out about the resignation of the French government. Barnier himself said that what happened will not change the current situation in the country, but on the contrary, will make things even more serious and difficult. He also predicted "dire consequences" for the country, in particular a decrease in the purchasing power of the French.
Marine Le Pen called Macron the main culprit behind the country's political crisis.
"He bears the main responsibility for the current situation. Both the dissolution of parliament and the vote of no confidence in the government are the consequences of Macron's seven-year rule," she said.
Russian State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin also shared his opinion on the situation in France. He considers its president guilty of the Fifth Republic's political crisis.
"The attempt to retain power by any means Macron failed. The current president of France has brought the once prosperous country to a state of deep political and economic crisis. The times of de Gaulle and Mitterrand are far in the past. France has lost not only its subjectivity in developing a pan-European position, but also its independence in decision-making," he wrote in his Telegram channel.
Senator Vladimir Chizhov, Russia's former representative to the EU, told RIA Novosti that France is in the abyss of an internal political crisis. "But this crisis is more systemic. It is also a crisis of Paris' foreign policy course, including in the Ukrainian direction, of course. <...> Barnier has become a victim. <...> Figuratively speaking, he was set up with this appointment," he said.
Whether Macron's resignation will happen
After the parliament passed a vote of no confidence in the Prime Minister, a petition demanding the resignation of Emmanuel Macron himself was also launched in France. From the text of the document it follows that the president's policy has failed in all areas and he "has been doing incredible damage to the country for seven long years: dividing it, making it insecure, humiliating it internationally, throwing itself into war, weakening its position worldwide, silencing its voice in the European Union and NATO, pursuing a disastrous policy required by the EU, which is leading us to collapse in all sectors of the economy (agriculture, industry, health, energy, immigration)".
French President Emmanuel Macron
This petition was launched by the Patriots party, whose founder is Florian Philippot.
Vyacheslav Volodin also commented on the French people's trust in the president: "By allowing Biden to drag himself into the war in Ukraine, and then trying to become the leader of its support among the EU states, Macron has finally lost the trust of his own population. The citizens of France understand what such policies can lead to. The time of Macron, Biden and the like should be a thing of the past," he wrote in his Telegram channel.
Emmanuel Le Roy called what happened a reputational blow to Macron: "It is obvious that this is another blow to him, that his position and his legitimacy are now seriously undermined and that from this point of view the position of France and its president is significantly weakened."
"There is no credibility left today: Macron has exhausted his credit and the only thing left to him is some kind of backup plan. It is very likely that the political, economic and social situation in France will deteriorate over the next few years," predicted Le Roy.
It is important to note that, according to a poll by Elabe for BFMTV, 63% of French people wanted Macron to resign in the event of a vote of no confidence in his government.
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