Just within nine months in office, the François Bayrou government in France collapsed on Monday as lawmakers ousted the PM in a confidence vote. A total of 364 MPs voted against Bayrou and 194 voted for him after he called the vote in a bid to push through an unpopular €44 billion ($51 billion) savings plan that included scrapping two public holidays and freezing government spending. The 364 votes against Bayrou were well above the 280-vote threshold needed to topple the government.“You have the power to overthrow the government, but you do not have the power to erase reality,” Bayrou said in a speech to the National Assembly before the confidence vote that he called. “Reality will remain inexorable. Spending will continue to increase and and the debt burden — already unbearable — will grow heavier and more costly.”“In line with article 50 of the constitution, the prime minister must submit the resignation of his government,” said speaker Yael Braun-Pivet.A person close to Bayrou, who asked not to be identified, told AFP that the premier would submit his resignation to President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday morning.
What’s next for France? Macron to name new PM
French president Emmanuel Macron would name a new PM in the next few days, the presidency said. Bayrou’s predecessor Michel Barnier lost a no-confidence vote last December. Even before the vote, speculation over Bayrou’s potential downfall triggered demands for the president to resign, though he insisted he will complete his mandate. Far-right leader Marine Le Pen urged him to dissolve parliament, but new elections would almost certainly bolster her party and deepen the divisions in the French legislature. An alternative would be for Macron to install a caretaker cabinet while searching for a new prime minister, with Armed Forces Minister Sébastien Lecornu and Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin emerging as leading contenders for what many see as a poisoned chalice.
