Thousands of furious citizens took to the streets across France on Saturday, in protest of President Emmanuel Macron’s decision to appoint centre-right Michel Barnier as prime minister. This move had prompted left-wing parties to accuse him of stealing legislative elections.
Macron appointed the 73-year-old Barnier, a conservative and European Union’s former Brexit negotiator, as prime minister on Thursday, ending a two-month-long search after his ill-advised decision to order a legislative election that delivered a hung parliament divided in three blocs.
Barnier had during his first interview as a government chief on Friday, that his government will include conservatives, members of Macron’s camp and hopefully some members from the left.
As it stands, Barnier faces the intimidating task of trying to drive reforms and the 2025 budget, as France is under pressure from the European Commission and bond markets to decrease its deficit.
In reaction to the appointment of Barnier, whose centre-right Les Republicains party is only the fifth bloc in parliament having less than 50 lawmakers, the left-wing party leaders, unions and student bodies have clamoured for mass protests on Saturday ahead of new action, including staging possible strikes on October 1.
The LFI party had even said that 130 protests would take place across the country.
The NFP and the far-right National Rally (RN) together have a majority rule and could oust the prime minister through a no-confidence vote if they decide to collaborate.
But the RN had given its tacit approval for Barnier citing a number of conditions for it to not support a no-confidence vote, making it the de facto kingmaker for the new government.
