"In the lead-up to the vote that ejected him from office this week after a mere nine months, the centre-right French prime minister, Francois Bayrou, appeared stoically reconciled to his fate. There are worse disasters in life than the fall of a government, Mr Bayrou observed on national radio, implicitly acknowledging his failure to win backing for a swingeing austerity strategy. On Monday, MPs duly used a debate called by the prime minister himself to oust him. And so another one bites the dust."
"The entrance to Matignon, France's baroque prime ministerial residence, has become a revolving door during Emmanuel Macron's benighted second term. Lacking a majority in a divided and deadlocked parliament, the president has gone through four premiers in a little over three years. Following the departure of the latest, he announced his intention to appoint a fifth within days, rather than countenance a new election with Marine Le Pen's Rassemblement National ahead in the polls. Continuing instability and paralysis in the political mainstream will only enhance the far right's prospects in presidential elections in 2027."
"Outlining his budget plans during the summer, Mr Bayrou disingenuously invoked a spirit of collective sacrifice in calling for the reduction of France's public deficit. But his cost-cutting measures focused on the less well-off, pensioners and those receiving welfare benefits, as he ignored calls to spread the pain upwards rather than downwards. Those political calculations faithfully reflected Mr Macron's economic priorities, which were encapsulated early on by decisions to abolish a wealth tax and ease the tax burden on big business."
Francois Bayrou was removed as prime minister after nine months when MPs used a debate he called to oust him following failure to secure support for austerity measures. Bayrou framed deficit reduction as collective sacrifice while his cuts targeted pensioners and welfare recipients, leaving wealthier groups largely insulated. Emmanuel Macron's second term has seen frequent turnovers at Matignon, with four premiers in just over three years and a fifth planned rather than fresh elections. A divided, deadlocked parliament and policies perceived as favouring the wealthy weaken the political mainstream and strengthen far-right prospects ahead of 2027.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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