France's Macron vows to stay in office till end of term, says he'll name a new prime minister soon

[December 06, 2024]  By TOM NOUVIAN, SYLVIE CORBET and JOHN LEICESTER

PARIS (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron vowed Thursday 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.

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.

Macron acknowledges his own responsibility

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 recognize that this decision wasn’t understood. Many criticized me for it,” Macron said. However, he argued, “I believe it was necessary” to let French voters speak.

The next priority is to pass a budget law

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.

How to achieve ‘the impossible’

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.”

French President Emmanuel Macron, right, and Prime Minister Michel Barnier stand at attention during commemorations marking the 106th anniversary of the November 11, 1918, Armistice, ending World War I, at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, Monday, Nov. 11, 2024. ( Ludovic Marin, Pool via AP, File)

Pressure to act swiftly

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.

Calls for Macron to step down

The no-confidence vote has galvanized 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.

Economic uncertainty looms

The political instability has heightened concerns about France’s economy, particularly its debt, which could rise to 7% 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.

Teachers' protest takes a political tone

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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