French parliament passes special law to keep essential gov't functions running amid political crisis

By Necva Tastan Sevinc

ISTANBUL (AA) – French lawmakers have passed a special law to keep essential government functions running, following a political crisis that resulted in the ousting of former Prime Minister Michel Barnier in a no-confidence vote in parliament.

The bill was unanimously approved by 481 lawmakers in the National Assembly on Monday, with parliamentarians from the far-left France Unbowed party abstaining.

The special law will now be debated in the Senate, the upper house of parliament, on Wednesday.

The legislation enables the government to levy taxes and continue social security operations based on the previous year's budget, avoiding a financial shutdown.

The law also allows for decree-based spending to ensure the continuity of public services and aid for cyclone-hit Mayotte.

The move comes 11 days after Barnier’s fall, making him the shortest-serving prime minister in contemporary French history. His ouster was the first successful no-confidence vote since Georges Pompidou's government was deposed in 1962.

Barnier’s austerity budget, aimed at stabilizing public finances amid a 6.1% deficit, had failed to gain parliamentary support, triggering the crisis.

Although the law was passed, tensions still exist as opposition Members of Parliament criticized National Assembly Speaker Yael Braun-Pivet for blocking amendments that would have made income tax inflation-indexed.

Outgoing Budget Minister Laurent Saint-Martin warned that the lack of indexation could push 380,000 new households into the tax bracket, but he said it could be addressed in the next budget.

Meanwhile, newly appointed Prime Minister Francois Bayrou faces the challenge of drafting a budget for fiscal year 2025 that can secure parliamentary approval. However, far-left Finance Committee President Eric Coquerel has pledged to oppose any austerity measures.

- Political instability haunts France since June

The country has been in political upheaval since June when Macron's centrist bloc failed and the far-right RN won the 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 alliance New Popular Front (NFP) 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-Premier 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 the prime minister.

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