The French minority government faces a vote of no confidence in the National Assembly today, Tuesday.
The Socialists initiated the vote against the center-right government due to dissatisfaction with Prime Minister François Bayrou’s approach to pension reform.
Observers expect the vote to fail, allowing the government to remain in power, as hardline nationalists led by Marine Le Pen do not intend to withdraw their support.
The vote relates to consultations initiated by Bayrou regarding a controversial pension reform scheduled for 2023. These consultations initially secured the Socialists’ tolerance.
However, the consultations failed, leading the Socialists to file a motion for a vote of no confidence, accusing Bayrou of not keeping his word on this issue and failing to uphold his promise that Parliament would have the final say on any potential changes to the pension reform.
The pension reform had sparked protests across France in early 2023. The main focus of the reform, proposed by President Emmanuel Macron, is to gradually raise the retirement age from 62 to 64 years.
