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Associated Press

French President Emmanuel Macron vowed to stay in office until the end of his term, due in 2027, and announced that he will name a new prime minister within days in efforts to overcome the political deadlock following the resignation of ousted Prime Minister Michel Barnier.
Macron came out fighting a day after a historic no-confidence vote prompted by budget disputes at the National Assembly left France without a functioning government. He laid blame at the door of his opponents on the far-right for bringing down Barnier’s government.
“They chose disorder,” he said on Thursday.
The president said the far-right and the far left had united in what he called “an anti-Republican front” and stressed: “I won’t shoulder other people’s irresponsibility”.

He said he’d name a new prime minister within days but gave no hints as to who that might be.
Earlier in the day, Macron “took note” of Barnier’s resignation after just three months in office – the shortest tenure of any prime minister in modern French history.
While critical of his political opponents, Macron also acknowledged what he described as his own responsibility in the chaos now shaking French politics and alarming financial markets.
He revisited his decision in June to dissolve parliament. That precipitated the crisis, leading to legislative elections that produced the now hung parliament, divided between three minority blocs that do not have enough seats to govern alone.
“I do recognise that this decision wasn’t understood. Many criticised me for it,” Macron said. However, he argued, “I believe it was necessary” to let French voters speak.
Macron said the new prime minister “will be charged with forming a government of general interest”.

He confirmed that a special law will be presented by mid-December to enable the state to levy taxes from Jan. 1, based on this year’s rules, and avoid a shutdown.
“Public services will be operational, businesses will be able to work,” he said.
The new government will then prepare a budget law for 2025, which will allow France to invest as planned in its military, its justice and police – and also to support struggling farmers, Macron said.
Along with its own domestic political and financial difficulties – not least France’s ballooning levels of debt – Macron noted that the country faces multiple international challenges, citing the wars in Ukraine and Middle East.
He looked back at the Paris Olympics in July-August and ahead to the reopening this weekend of Notre Dame Cathedral, arguing that France can emerge from this latest political crisis if it sets its mind on it.
“It’s proof that we know how to do great things, that we know how to achieve the impossible,” he said.

“Twice this year, the world has admired us for this,” he said, referring to the hosting of the Olympics and the restoration of Notre Dame. “Well, for the nation, we must do same thing.”
Macron faces the critical task of naming a replacement for Barnier capable of leading a minority government in a parliament where no party holds a majority. Yaël Braun-Pivet, president of the National Assembly and a member of Macron’s party, urged the president to move quickly.
“I recommend he decide rapidly on a new prime minister,” Braun-Pivet said Thursday on France Inter radio. “There must not be any political hesitation. We need a leader who can speak to everyone and work to pass a new budget bill.”
The process may prove challenging. French media have reported a shortlist of centrist candidates who might appeal to both sides of the political spectrum.
The no-confidence vote has galvanised opposition leaders, with some explicitly calling for Macron’s resignation.
“I believe that stability requires the departure of the President of the Republic,” Manuel Bompard, leader of the far-left France Unbowed party, said on BFM TV Wednesday night.
Far-right National Rally leader Marine Le Pen, whose party holds the most seats in the Assembly, stopped short of calling for Macron’s resignation but warned that “the pressure on the President of the Republic will get stronger and stronger”.
The French constitution does not call for a president to resign after his government was ousted by the National Assembly. It also says that new legislative elections cannot be held until at least July, creating a potential stalemate for policymakers.
The political instability has heightened concerns about France’s economy, particularly its debt, which could rise to 7 per cent of GDP next year without significant reforms.
Analysts say that Barnier’s government downfall could push up French interest rates, digging the debt even further.
Rating agency Moody’s warned late Wednesday that the government’s fall “reduces the likelihood of consolidating public finances” and worsens the political gridlock.
A planned protest by teachers against budget cuts in education took on a new tone Thursday, as demonstrators in Paris linked their demands to the political crisis.
“Macron quit!” read a sign held by Dylan Quenon, a 28-year-old teacher at a middle school in Aubervilliers, just north of Paris.
Quenon said Macron bears responsibility for what he described as the dismantling of public services such as schools. “The only way for this to change is to have him out of office,” he said.
Protesters expressed little hope that Macron’s next appointee would reverse course.
“I’m glad this government is falling, but it could possibly lead to something even worse,” said Élise De La Gorce, a 33-year-old teacher in Stains, north of Paris.


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France

France’s Macron vows to stay in office after government collapse

French President Emmanuel Macron during a televised broadcast on Thursday. Photo: AFP

Ousted Prime Minister Michel Barnier, who was toppled in a historic no-confidence vote on Wednesday. Photo: Reuters

The French National Assembly in Paris on Wednesday. Photo: SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

Far-right leader Marine Le Pen. Photo: EPA-EFE

French government toppled in no-confidence vote, deepening political crisis

French Prime Minister Michel Barnier removes his glasses after giving a speech during a debate on two motions of no-confidence against the French government in Paris on Wednesday. Photo: Reuters

The French National Assembly in Paris on Wednesday. Photo: AFP

Far-right leader Marine Le Pen on Wednesday. Photo: AFP

French President Emmanuel Macron in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday. Photo: AFP

French lawmakers to vote Wednesday on toppling the government

French Prime Minister Michel Barnier on Monday. Photo: Reuters

National Rally (RN) leader Marine Le Pen on Monday. Photo: AFP

France’s President Emmanuel Macron (right) and France’s Prime Minister Michel Barnier. File photo: AFP

French Prime Minister Michel Barnier, delivering a speech in parliament on Monday. Photo: EPA-EFE

Michel Barnier goes down as shortest-serving prime minister in French history

France’s Prime Minister Michel Barnier. Photo: AFP

French Prime Minister Michel Barnier on Wednesday. Photo: Reuters

France’s Prime Minister Michel Barnier and President Emmanuel Macron in November. File photo: AFP

Macron seeks remedy to France’s political crisis

A protester holds a placard reading “Macron, you stink, get out” during a rally in Marseille. Photo: AFP

French President Emmanuel Macron (right) and Prime Minister Michel Barnier. Photo: AP

French President Emmanuel Macron looks on during a visit to the archaeological site of al-Hijr (Hegra), near the northwestern Saudi city of AlUla. Photo: AFP

People walk past the Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris. Photo: Xinhua

France’s far-right Marine Le Pen threatens to bring down government over planned budget

French President of far-right party Rassemblement National parliamentary group Marine Le Pen leaves after a meeting with the French Prime Minister in Paris on November 25. Photo: AFP

French Prime Minister Michel Barnier arrives for a meeting with Marine Le Pen. Photo: AFP

News

World

Europe

French president blames far-right for political chaos and promises a new prime minister soon


French president blames far-right for political chaos and promises a new prime minister soon.


Emmanuel Macron

European Union

Protests around the world