French President Emmanuel Macron has requested outgoing Prime Minister Michel Barnier and his government to stay on in a caretaker capacity until a new prime minister is appointed.
“The Prime Minister today submitted the resignation of his Government to the President of the Republic, who acknowledged it. Michel Barnier, together with the members of the Government, ensures the handling of current affairs until the appointment of a new Government,” the Élysée Palace said in a statement on Thursday.
Barnier’s resignation comes after far-right and leftist lawmakers voted to topple his government, plunging France—the eurozone’s second-largest economy—deeper into political crisis and making him the shortest-serving prime minister in modern French history, having served only 90 days.
Macron is believed to be in a hurry to appoint a new premier to avoid a power vacuum, according to multiple sources who spoke to AFP.
The trigger for Barnier’s ouster was his 2025 budget plan, which included austerity measures unacceptable to a majority in parliament but which he argued were necessary to stabilize France’s finances.
Speaking to French lawmakers before the vote on Wednesday, Barnier defended his decision to force the passage of the 2025 social security budget, pointing out that France faces an enormous deficit. “This reality remains there; it will not disappear by the magic of a no-confidence vote,” he said.
(With input from agencies)
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Macron asks Barnier and his government to stay on until next PM named
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