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French government narrowly escaped No-Confidence Vote

Although attempts to overthrow the government have failed, there is already widespread speculation that Macron may wish to replace his embattled Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne in an effort to improve his reputation.

Paris, 21 March 2023 (GNP): On Monday, President Emmanuel Macron’s government barely escaped being overthrown by a no-confidence vote in the National Assembly after countering the lower house to ram through a massively unpopular reform to the pension system.

A vote of no confidence was conducted when the French government pushed through raising the pension age from 62 to 64.

It aroused great anti government  public protests in Paris, where 101 people were detained following confrontations with police forces.

278 votes were cast in favor of the vote, which centrist Lawmakers proposed, falling below of the required 287 votes.

Moreover, marches and protests against the pension reform will persist, according to protesters and unions. 

Observers claim that Macron’s reformist agenda and leadership have already been tarnished by his inability to secure enough support in parliament to put his pension schemes to a vote.

President Emmanuel Macron would have had to form a new government or hold fresh elections if the vote of no-confidence had been successful.

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The far-right National Rally Party’s second no-confidence motion was equally unsuccessful.

The disputed bill to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64 will now become law as a result of both votes collapsing.

Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne was hollered at by MPs from the hard-left La France Insoumise (LFI, France Unbowed) as soon as the vote’s marginal defeat was revealed, shouting “Resign!” and waving signs that said, “We’ll meet in the streets.” 

The leader of the LFI parliamentary group, Mathilde Panot, told reporters that nothing had been resolved and that her group will keep up its efforts to push this reform back.

Since the “Yellow Vest” movement more than four years ago, violent unrest has broken out across the nation in recent days, and trade unions have vowed to step up their strike action. Subsequently, Macron is now facing the most severe threat to his authority.

The votes were held after the act was passed last week without a vote pursuant to Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne’s decision to invoke a particular constitutional provision known as Article 49:3.

That provoked violent protests over the weekend, with some protesters engaging in physical altercations with police and blocking roadways in downtown Paris and other cities around the country with burning rubble.

Following the unsuccessful votes on Monday, there were further protests in the capital, which result in a violent confrontation between protestors and anti-riot police.

The leader of the hard-left La France Insoumise parliamentary group, Mathilde Panot said, “Nothing is solved, we’ll continue to do all we can so this reform is pulled back”.

One university student, Shola, who participated in the Paris protests, told the AFP news agency: “People think this subject does not concern us but in fact it does. If our grandparents will now have to work longer, we know that things will get worse.”

On Thursday, A ninth nationwide day of strikes and protests is scheduled. 

On Thursday, there will be a ninth day of strikes and protests around the country. Helene Mayans of the hard-left CGT union announced, “We’ll gather again on Thursday,” during a protest in the Paris city center.

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