Paris, 5 December (IANS). Deputies to the French National Assembly voted in favor of a motion of no confidence on Wednesday evening. Because of this, French Prime Minister Michel Barnier had to resign and his government fell.
A total of 331 MPs, most of whom are from the left-wing alliance New Popular Front (NFP) and right-wing party National Rally (RN), voted in favor of the no-confidence motion, Xinhua news agency reported. Whereas 289 votes were needed to pass the no-confidence motion.
Bernier becomes the first French prime minister since 1962 to be forced to step down by a vote of no-confidence.
According to the French Constitution, Barnier will now have to submit his resignation to French President Emmanuel Macron. The resignation will automatically be considered accepted.
Speaking to French lawmakers before the vote, Barnier defended his decision to pass the 2025 social security budget.
Pointing out that France is facing huge losses, Barnier said, “This is the truth and will not disappear with the magic of a no-confidence motion.”
Following the announcement of the success of the no-confidence vote, former right-wing party leader Marine Le Pen said she would not consider the vote a ‘victory’.
“The option we have chosen is to protect the French,” RN leader Le Pen told French television TF1, adding that “there is no other solution than this one”.
France is going through an important period. The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has forecast that France’s economic growth will slow from 1.1 percent in 2024 to 0.9 percent in 2025.
–IANS
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