From 24m ago
French parliament set for no-confidence votes
Welcome to our Europe blog with a lively day expected in the French parliament with two no-confidence votes scheduled.
The prime minister, Sébastien Lecornu, and his government appear likely to survive, however, after he offered to suspend President Emmanuel Macron’s landmark pension reform to win support from the left.
The Socialists, who hold the key to Lecornu’s political survival, welcomed the move, saying they would not support the no-confidence motions, one from the far-left and the other from the far-right National Rally.
The result is still expected to be close, Reuters reports, with potential rebels from the Socialists or conservative Republicans injecting a measure of doubt into the result.
There are 265 lawmakers in parliament from parties that have said they will vote to topple Lecornu, with only 289 votes needed to oust him.
By putting the pension reform on the chopping block, Lecornu threatens to kill off one of Macron’s main economic legacies at a time when France’s public finances are in a perilous state. The country is in the midst of its worst political crisis in decades as a succession of minority governments seek to push deficit-reducing budgets through a truculent legislature split into three distinct ideological blocs.
Meanwhile the Socialists are seeking to capitalise on their current power with a bid to introduce a flagship wealth tax to raise revenue by targeting France’s richest people.
The debate is already under way. I will bring you updates and reactions as they come in.
It’s Thursday, 16 October 2025, I’m Amy Sedghi and this is Europe Live.
Good morning.
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Key events
Jon Henley
The latest prime minister, the recently reappointed Sébastien Lecornu, may have bought himself a stay of execution on Tuesday, sacrificing Emmanuel Macron’s flagship pensions overhaul in exchange for opposition Socialist votes as the price for his government’s survival.
But it is, at best, a temporary fix. The EU’s second-largest economy is locked in a political permacrisis, the likes of which it has not seen for decades – perhaps not since the start of its Fifth Republic in 1958 – and from which there appears no easy escape.
Essential context: ever since Macron called an ill-advised snap general election in 2024, France has had a hung parliament divided into three warring blocs – left, far right and his own centre-right alliance – none with anything close to a majority.
At the same time, the country faces dual debt and deficit crises: its debt-to-GDP ratio and budget shortfall are now almost twice the EU limit, and hard constitutional deadlines to pass a 2026 budget that at least begins to rein in spending are nigh.
Against that unforgiving backdrop, both Lecornu’s immediate predecessors as French prime minister – Michel Barnier, who lasted from September to December 2024, and François Bayrou, who took office from December 2024 to September 2025 – were ousted by parliament.
There is a live feed of the French parliament debate at the top of this blog. You may need to refresh the page to view it. Also, note that the debate will be in French with no translation in the video. Marine Le Pen is speaking now.
French parliament set for no-confidence votes
Welcome to our Europe blog with a lively day expected in the French parliament with two no-confidence votes scheduled.
The prime minister, Sébastien Lecornu, and his government appear likely to survive, however, after he offered to suspend President Emmanuel Macron’s landmark pension reform to win support from the left.
The Socialists, who hold the key to Lecornu’s political survival, welcomed the move, saying they would not support the no-confidence motions, one from the far-left and the other from the far-right National Rally.
The result is still expected to be close, Reuters reports, with potential rebels from the Socialists or conservative Republicans injecting a measure of doubt into the result.
There are 265 lawmakers in parliament from parties that have said they will vote to topple Lecornu, with only 289 votes needed to oust him.
By putting the pension reform on the chopping block, Lecornu threatens to kill off one of Macron’s main economic legacies at a time when France’s public finances are in a perilous state. The country is in the midst of its worst political crisis in decades as a succession of minority governments seek to push deficit-reducing budgets through a truculent legislature split into three distinct ideological blocs.
Meanwhile the Socialists are seeking to capitalise on their current power with a bid to introduce a flagship wealth tax to raise revenue by targeting France’s richest people.
The debate is already under way. I will bring you updates and reactions as they come in.
It’s Thursday, 16 October 2025, I’m Amy Sedghi and this is Europe Live.
Good morning.