France gets new prime minister

France's government has fallen. On Monday evening, Prime Minister François Bayrou lost the vote of confidence in the National Assembly. A large majority of MPs voted against the government. 364 MPs voted against it, while 194 parliamentarians expressed their confidence in it.

President Emmanuel Macron intends to appoint a new prime minister this week. The Élysée Palace announced that Macron would meet with Bayrou today, Tuesday, to accept his resignation. He will then appoint a new head of government “in the coming days.” Macron is now under pressure to restore political stability to the country.

However, it is considered unlikely that the appointment of a new prime minister will quickly end the government crisis in France. Neither Macron's party alliance, nor the alliance of Greens and Leftists Nouveau Front Populaire, nor the far-right Rassemblement National (RN) have an absolute or clear majority in parliament.

Bayrou himself had expected his government to fall. His austerity plans for the budget had met with considerable resistance. The savings for highly indebted France envisaged cuts of almost EUR 44 billion. The national debt currently stands at more than EUR 3.3 trillion, or around 114 percent of GDP.

The left and right are now calling for new elections. The presidential election is not actually due until 2027. The left-wing La France Insoumise is demanding that Macron resign or be removed from office and that early elections be held. The RN is also calling for new elections. The far right, led by Marine Le Pen and Jordan Bardella, in particular, believe they have a chance of winning an early election. When Macron called new elections last summer, the RN won the first round. The Greens, Social Democrats, and left-wing parties joined forces to form the Nouveau Front Populaire to prevent Le Pen from winning. Marion Bergermann