Mathilde Panot, the leader of the far-left La France insoumise (LFI) parliamentary group, announced on Thursday that her party will “censor” any prime minister not coming from the left-wing alliance, according to AFP. This stance includes Bernard Cazeneuve, a center-left politician frequently mentioned as a potential future prime minister, but who is not part of the New Popular Front (NFP). The NFP includes Greens, Socialists, Communists, and the far-left.
Panot’s warning comes amidst a political upheaval following the French parliament’s dismissal of Michel Barnier’s minority government on Wednesday. The government, which had been in power for only three months, was ousted through a no-confidence motion—the first such event in France since 1962. The motion was tabled by the left-wing alliance and supported by Marine Le Pen’s National Rally (RN).
Barnier is expected to formally resign on Thursday morning, with President Emmanuel Macron scheduled to address the nation later that evening. France, the eurozone’s second-largest economy, is grappling with a significant budget deficit that has strained its financial markets and raised borrowing costs. The country spends €60 billion annually on interest payments for its debt—more than it allocates to defense or higher education, Barnier noted in his speech before the vote.
This political instability follows last month’s collapse of the German government, placing two key European Union powers in precarious positions amid internal crises.
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