France’s government survived a crucial no-confidence vote in Parliament on Thursday by a thin margin, giving the country a brief respite from political turmoil before what is expected to be another brutal battle over its budget.
The no-confidence motion, which was filed by the far-left France Unbowed party, drew the support of 271 lawmakers in the 577-seat lower house — shy of the absolute majority of 289 votes required to topple Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu and his cabinet.
A second no-confidence motion, filed by the far-right National Rally party, received less support, with only 144 lawmakers voting in favor.
Mr. Lecornu’s survival gave France a moment to breathe after weeks of political instability that plunged the country into deep uncertainty over its future and weighed on its economy. Had the no-confidence motions against Mr. Lecornu succeeded, it would have been the second time in less than two weeks that the government had collapsed.
“This is obviously the moment of truth,” Mr. Lecornu told lawmakers before the vote. “Do not take the budget for the nation and the budget for our social security as hostages.”
The results on Thursday, however, were largely expected after Mr. Lecornu offered this week to delay an unpopular pension overhaul that gradually raised the legal age of retirement to 64 from 62. That move was a major concession to the moderate left-wing Socialist Party, whose support Mr. Lecornu needed to ensure the no-confidence motions would not pass.
The government of Mr. Lecornu, a centrist and close ally of President Emmanuel Macron, is France’s fourth in less than a year — and the latest in a succession of unstable, center-right minority cabinets appointed by an increasingly unpopular Mr. Macron.
Mr. Lecornu resigned last week after less than a month in office, only to be reappointed just days later, which angered opponents who wanted Mr. Macron to call snap legislative elections or step down.
The French president has firmly ruled out resigning, but he threatened to call new elections if Mr. Lecornu were toppled. The government’s survival on Thursday averted that outcome, but the respite could be short-lived.
Mr. Lecornu must now get a budget passed in a cantankerous lower house, where the main forces — an assortment of divided left-wing parties, a tenuous centrist coalition, a reduced conservative party, and a far-right bloc — agree on very little. Additional no-confidence votes are likely in the coming weeks and months.
Parliamentary debate on the budget, which must conclude before the end of the year, could see a confrontation between the government and the Socialist Party, who disagree on how to reduce France’s deficit.
Other left-wing parties say the Socialists were foolish to prop up Mr. Lecornu’s government in exchange for the pension overhaul delay, since it might not even survive budget discussions.
“All of you who were elected to repeal the pension reform, are you really going to let yourselves be fooled by this misleading handout?” Aurélie Trouvé, a lawmaker from the France Unbowed party, told the lower house before the vote.
In a sign of internal tensions, seven lawmakers that belong to or are affiliated with the Socialist Party broke ranks on Thursday and voted in favor of the no-confidence motion. The party’s leadership insists that it will keep Mr. Lecornu to his word and defend measures like a new wealth tax.
“If commitments are not honored, I am thinking in particular of the pension overhaul, we will immediately censure them,” Olivier Faure, the head of the Socialist Party, told reporters at the National Assembly after the vote.
Ségolène Le Stradic contributed reporting.
Aurelien Breeden is a reporter for The Times in Paris, covering news from France.
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