France has been plunged into a new political crisis after the government of Prime Minister Michel Barnier was toppled in a vote of no confidence in the National Assembly. The government must resign after only three months in power. Thus, President Emmanuel Macron must start the search for a new prime minister, which is unlikely to be easy. In the no-confidence motion against the government, 331 of the National Assembly’s 574 members voted in favour. It was the politicians on both the far-right and the left who felled the centrist government. The first time in over 60 years It is the first time a government has passed a motion of no confidence since Georges Pompidou’s government fell in 1962, while Charles de Gaulle was president of France. Barnier took a calculated risk when he forced through next year’s state budget by using a power in the French constitution that allowed him to avoid a vote in the National Assembly. – Unknown territory – It is now up to you to decide whether our country will have an economic governance that is responsible, indispensable and useful for our French citizens, or whether we will enter unknown territory, Barnier told the National Assembly on Monday. FALLING AUTHORITY: Marine Le Pen has said she will vote for the motions of no confidence against the French government tonight. Photo: Reuters The National Assembly did not share the prime minister’s view on the matter, and now France is thrown into a new government crisis. France now risks going into 2025 without agreement on a state budget, but the French constitution has mechanisms to avoid a full state shutdown. Le Pen: – The pressure is increasing on Macron Sources for the Reuters news agency say that Macron hopes to get a new government in place quickly, but whether he will be able to do so is rather uncertain without a clear majority in the national assembly. National Assembly presidential candidate Marine Le Pen is clear in her feedback to Macron. – I am not demanding Macron’s resignation, but the pressure is increasing, he alone has the last word, Le Pen said after the vote. CRISIS: Prime Minister Michel Barnier’s government has fallen tonight. President Emmanuel Macron is looking for good solutions. Photo: Reuters She gives no guarantees that they will support the president’s next candidate for prime minister. – We make several demands to support a new prime minister, including respecting the voters, she says. French President Emmanuel Macron will address the nation on Thursday evening, the president’s office reports. The fall of the government means that the far-left party LFI asks the president to resign. – We are now asking Macron to go, said the Irrepressible France (LFI) parliamentary leader, Mathilde Panot, after the result of the no-confidence vote was clear. Her party helped bring down the government on Wednesday night. Panot believes that a new election for the presidency should now be called to resolve the deepening political crisis. Published 04.12.2024, at 20.55 Updated 04.12.2024, at 21.16
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