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French President Emmanuel Macron has hit out at opposition parties he says have “chose chaos” after ousting his prime minister in a historic no-confidence vote, vowing not to resign before the end of his term.
“The mandate that you democratically entrusted to me is a five-year mandate and I will fulfill it fully until it ends,” Macron said on Thursday in his first public speech since displacement the government of Prime Minister Michel Barnier.
“My responsibility requires me to ensure the continuity of the state, the proper functioning of our institutions, the independence of our country and the protection of all of you.”
Macron’s term in office runs until 2027, but he faces increasing pressure from opposition groups to step down early. He must now name a new head of government, who will have to lead the same deeply divided parliament that ousted Barnier on Wednesday night.
The president said he would name a new prime minister “in the coming days” as he hit out at the far-right National Assembly and the left-wing New People’s Front alliance. “They chose chaos,” he said, adding that they only thought “about the presidential elections: how to prepare for them, provoke them, speed them up.”
France’s parliament has been deadlocked since Macron called and lost snap legislative elections in the summer that left the parliament split between three groups, none of which has a clear majority. According to the French constitution, the president cannot call new parliamentary elections before July next year.
Barnier’s three-month premiership was the shortest in the history of France’s Fifth Republic, and the vote of no confidence over drastic budget deficit cuts was only the second to topple an administration since 1958.
The next government will still have to pass a budget by the end of the year. Macron said a special finance law would be presented to parliament by mid-December to ensure “the continuity of public services and the life of the country”. . . until there is a majority in Parliament to govern.
Barnier’s administration collapsed without passing a controversial 2025 budget that included a €60 billion package of tax hikes and spending cuts aimed at cutting the deficit from more than 6 percent this year to about 5 percent next year.
His downfall was largely due to the RN following through on its threats to suspend him if all “red lines” of far-right parties on the budget were not fulfilled — despite some last-minute concessions from Barnier.
Deep divisions in parliament will continue to complicate the budget debate, as well as making it difficult to choose a new prime minister who can provide political stability
Macron must now decide whether to renew a similar alliance with Barnier’s Les Républicains party or try to create a new configuration. Centrist politicians in Macron’s camp have tried to persuade moderate left parties to break with the far-left La France Insoumise, but so far these efforts have been rebuffed.
The LFI has vowed to “automatically condemn” any prime minister who is not left-wing. RN leader Marine Le Pen, in turn, said on Thursday that her party would oppose any prime minister from the left. “There will be no Prime Minister from the Nouveau Front Populaire,” she told CNews on Thursday.
Macron thanked Barnier, a veteran right-wing politician and the EU’s lead Brexit negotiator, for his services. The former prime minister resigned earlier on Thursday but was asked to stay on as interim leader until Macron appoints his successor.
