A vote of no-confidence in Prime Minister Francois Bayrou, initiated by the leftist France Unbowed party, failed to get enough votes, French media reported on Friday.
President of the National Assembly Yaël Braun-Pivet announced:
“The necessary majority has not been reached. The vote of no-confidence has not been passed.”
The vote of no-confidence required 289 votes, while only 131 deputies voted in favour of the “France Unbowed” initiative. Thus, Bayrou’s cabinet remains in power.
“France Unbowed” announced plans to seek a vote of no confidence in Prime Minister Francois Bayrou on January 14 in the National Assembly.
The announcements followed Bayrou’s speech to members of the National Assembly. Bayrou said the government would review the pension reform, which includes raising the retirement age from 62 to 64. The prime minister said that if the commission dealing with the pension issue does not reach an agreement by the autumn, the pension reform in its current form will remain in effect.
French President Emmanuel Macron signed the pension reform law on April 15, 2023. It included the postponement of the statutory retirement age to 64. On April 14, the French Constitutional Council recognised the pension reform as legal.
The law on increasing the retirement age was passed on March 16 without a vote in parliament. The next day, the opposition group LIOT put forward a vote of no confidence in the government. Mass protests took place in various cities of France.
