Thu Dec 05 15:42:40 UTC 2024: ## French Government Collapses, Plunging Nation into Political Crisis

**PARIS** – French Prime Minister Michel Barnier is expected to resign today, triggering a major political crisis just six months after the last one. His government was toppled by a combined vote of far-right and left-wing lawmakers, marking the shortest-lived premiership in modern French history. The confidence vote, the first successful challenge to a French government since 1962, followed weeks of bitter clashes over a deeply unpopular austerity budget.

The 60 billion euro ($63 billion) budget, aimed at reducing France’s deficit, proved too controversial for the fractured parliament. Marine Le Pen’s National Rally, along with left-wing factions, criticized its impact on working-class families. Barnier’s attempt to push the budget through without a full vote further fueled opposition.

The collapse weakens President Emmanuel Macron, who called a snap election earlier this year – a decision now widely viewed as a miscalculation. While Macron’s mandate extends until 2027, his authority has been significantly diminished by the ongoing political instability. Calls for his resignation are growing.

France now faces the prospect of a year without a stable government and possibly even a 2025 budget, though constitutional measures could prevent a complete government shutdown. This turmoil comes as the European Union grapples with its own instability following the collapse of Germany’s coalition government, and just days before US President-elect Donald Trump’s visit to Paris. Macron aims to appoint a new prime minister before Trump’s arrival on Saturday for the Notre Dame cathedral unveiling.

The crisis has already sent shockwaves through financial markets, with French borrowing costs briefly surpassing those of Greece. Any successor to Barnier will face the same daunting task of navigating a deeply divided parliament to pass crucial legislation, including the 2025 budget. The next parliamentary election is not scheduled until July 2025. The nation now enters a period of considerable uncertainty.

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