French parliament votes to oust prime minister, deepening political crisis

PARIS (Reuters) - France's parliament brought down the government on Monday over its plans to tame the ballooning national debt, deepening a political crisisthat is weakening the euro zone's second-largest economy at a time of steep global tensions.

President Emmanuel Macron, who is facing calls from the opposition to dissolve parliament and resign, will instead hunt for his fifth prime minister in less than two years. His office said he would appoint one in the next few days.

The next government's most pressing task will be to pass a budget, the same challenge Bayrou faced when he took office. Securing the backing of a very divided parliament will be equally hard.

"You have the power to bring down the government, but you do not have the power to erase reality," Bayrou told lawmakers before losing the confidence vote, with 364 votes against him and only 194 in his favour.

"Reality will remain relentless: expenses will continue to rise, and the burden of debt, already unbearable, will grow heavier and more costly," he said.

Francois Bayrou, who took office as prime minister only nine months ago, will tender his resignation on Tuesday, his office said.

Bayrou had called the confidence vote to try to win parliamentary support for his strategy to lower a deficit that stands at nearly double the European Union's 3% ceiling and to start tackling a debt pile equivalent to 114% of GDP.

But opposition parties were in little mood to rally behind his planned savings of 44 billion euros ($51.51 billion) in next year's budget, with an election for Macron's successor looming in 2027.

"This moment marks the end of the agony of a phantom government," far-right leader Marine Le Pen said, pushing for a snap parliamentary election, which Macron has so far ruled out.
"Macron is now on the front line facing the people. He too must go," Jean-Luc Melenchon, leader of the hard-left France Unbowed, said on X.

WHO'S NEXT?

Macron could now nominate a politician from his own centrist minority ruling group or from the ranks of conservatives as the next premier, but that would mean doubling down on a strategy that has failed to yield a stable alliance.

He could tack to the left and nominate a moderate socialist, or choose a technocrat.

No scenario would be likely to hand the next government a parliamentary majority. It was inevitable that the need to form a new government would result in a dilution of the deficit reduction plan, Finance Minister Eric Lombard said before the vote.

Macron may eventually decide the only path out of the crisis lies in calling a snap election, but he has so far resisted calls from Le Pen's National Rally and from France Unbowed to dissolve parliament a second time.