French parliament adopts special law to keep gov’t functioning until new budget ready

By Nur Asena Erturk

ANKARA (AA) – France’s parliament adopted a “special budget law” Wednesday to maintain key government functions until a new budget for the next year is passed, according to local media reports.

After lawmakers at the National Assembly -- the lower chamber of the French parliament -- voted in favor of the temporary law on Monday, senators unanimously approved it on Wednesday, broadcaster BFMTV said.

The special law, which President Emmanuel Macron announced after Prime Minister Michel Barnier and his government were ousted earlier this month, will ensure the continuity of public services in the country, and the French state will be able to keep collecting taxes.

The budget crisis stems from Barnier’s use of a constitutional measure to pass the 2025 Social Security budget without parliamentary approval, a move that led to his ousting in a no-confidence vote on Dec. 4.

His successor, Francois Bayrou, faces the challenge of drafting a budget for fiscal year 2025 that can secure parliamentary approval.

Bayrou must first form a Cabinet, for which he started talks with political parties on Monday.

- Political instability haunts France since June

France has been in a political upheaval since June, when Macron's centrist bloc failed and the far-right National Rally (RN) party won European Parliament elections.

In response, Macron called for two rounds of snap parliamentary elections on June 30 and July 7, but no party won 289 seats, the threshold for an absolute majority in the National Assembly.

The left-wing New Popular Front (NFP) alliance won the most votes and seats in parliament in the second round and later insisted that the prime minister must be from the alliance, but it failed to nominate a consensus candidate for the position immediately.

After weeks of internal divisions, the NFP nominated Lucie Castets for prime minister on July 23.

However, Macron rejected a left-wing candidate and said he would not appoint a premier until mid-August after the Paris Olympics.

He faced criticism for delaying the process, fueling further instability after he accepted then-Prime Minister Gabriel Attal's resignation on July 16 after initially rejecting it on July 8.

On Sept. 5, Macron finally appointed Barnier, a center-right politician, former European commissioner and former foreign minister, as prime minister.

Barnier's government has become the first to collapse with a no-confidence vote since 1962.