Both the far-right National Rally and the NFP have tabled no-confidence motions that will be debated on Wednesday. The NFP, the largest coalition in the French lower house, holds more seats than its far-right rivals, which means its motion will be voted on first. The National Rally has indicated it will support the NFP motion, making it almost certain that the Barnier government will become the first since 1962 to be overthrown by France’s parliament.
Barnier’s government was formed less than three months ago in a bid to stabilize a fractured parliament. Since Macron’s surprise decision to call snap elections this past summer, the National Assembly has been split into three roughly equal blocs — left-wing, right-of-center and far-right — none of which are willing to cooperate. Parliament can only be dissolved once a year, which means new elections cannot take place before next summer.
The political gridlock has fueled criticism of the president, with calls for his resignation gaining traction across party lines. Macron dismissed such demands as “political fiction” and “nonsensical.”
“I was elected twice by the French people. I am extremely proud of this, and I will honor their trust with all my energy until the very last second of my term to serve the country,” he said.
Despite his professed faith in the Barnier government, Macron sought to downplay concerns that its failure would trigger a financial crisis due to France’s mounting debt.
“We shouldn’t scare people with these things, we have a strong economy,” he said. “France is a rich, solid country, which has made a lot of reforms and is sticking to them, which has stable institutions, a stable Constitution.”
