In what resembled a swan song, the French Prime Minister on Sunday evening sought to make a few concessions to the opposition over the drastic austerity plan he unveiled during the summer, even as both the left and the far right currently appear determined to bring down the government.
With the looming threat of being toppled in the National Assembly on 8 September, the Prime Minister embarked on a veritable media marathon in a bid to save his skin.
Yet, after declaring last week that he would “fight like a dog”, Bayrou on Sunday evening seemed to flounder under the barrage of questions from journalists gathered at the Hôtel de Matignon.
“The issue is not the fate of the Prime Minister; the issue is the fate of France,” he said hesitantly, defending the €44 billion savings plan he had presented in mid-July.
Bayrou tried once again to play the pedagogue, stressing that the national debt had risen above €3.3 trillion, and arguing that if citizens grasped the seriousness of the situation, “they would rally.”
“Without at least the minimal consent of the French people, and of those who represent them, no courageous policy is possible,” he said, justifying the decision to call a confidence vote.
Beyond that, the Prime Minister appeared muddled, clumsily attempting to reach out to the opposition.
To the left, he insisted he was “open” to tax increases targeting the wealthiest. To the parties of the governing coalition, he recalled his stance in favour of replacing only one in three retiring civil servants.
And to the far right, he suggested it might be “worth considering” a reduction in France’s contribution to the European Union (EU), adding that the country’s immigration policy needed to “evolve.”
As for his proposal to abolish two public holidays—a measure denounced by trade unions and by a vast majority of French people—the Prime Minister conceded it was “entirely negotiable.”
There is little chance, however, that such arguments swayed the opposition parties, who hold a majority in the National Assembly. On Sunday, Socialist Party (PS) First Secretary Olivier Faure reiterated that his decision to vote against the government was “irreversible”, adding that the only word he now expected from the Prime Minister was “goodbye.”
The same tone was struck on the far right, as National Rally (RN) president Jordan Bardella said over the weekend that he saw “no other solution” to the political crisis than to “turn to the French people.”
According to a poll published on Saturday, Marine Le Pen’s party would come first in voting intentions in the event of fresh parliamentary elections, with around 31 per cent of the vote.
Bayrou maintained that a “tiny window of opportunity” still existed through which the government might squeeze in to survive.
But the Prime Minister also seemed increasingly resigned, condemning opposition parties as “hostile and hateful towards one another” while warning of a coming period of “disorder and chaos” should the National Assembly be dissolved again.
Asked about such a possibility, President Emmanuel Macron declined to “indulge in political fiction” during a joint press conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Friday.
(adm)
