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France avoids government crisis?
At 3:23 p.m., just twenty minutes after starting his first speech as prime minister before the deputies of the National Assembly, Sébastien Lecornu announced the formula that changed his political fortunes: "I will propose the suspension of the pension reform until after the next presidential elections."
This was one of the three main conditions that the socialists had set in order not to topple the government, and the most precarious of the three, since the refusal to use the infamous article 49.3 and the acceptance of fiscal justice measures were almost taken for granted. With this concession, Lecornu avoided a vote of no confidence and saved the executive.
Boris Vallaud, from the Socialist Party, officially announced in the National Assembly hall that the Socialists will not vote to topple the government, calling the suspension of the pension reform "a victory for thousands of French people."
Two no-confidence motions, presented by Marine Le Pen's Rassemblement National and Jean-Luc Mélenchon's France Insoumise, will be put to the vote on Thursday, but are expected to garner only around 250 votes, far short of the 289 needed to topple the government. With the Socialists' 69 votes excluded from this count, Lecornu's government remains stable.
The new prime minister maintained a political balance, taking care not to alienate the Gaullist right, which supported the reform. Lecornu stressed that the suspension “cannot be just for the sake of suspension” and that it would be “irresponsible” if it was not accompanied by real changes. He warned that the cost of the suspended reform, 400 million euros in 2026 and 1.2 billion in 2027, must be offset through savings, not by increasing the deficit.
He also accepted another Socialist demand: the introduction of a tax on super-billionaires. Lecornu announced the creation of an “exceptional contribution for large fortunes,” but excluding professional wealth, a key difference from what the “Zucman tax” called for on France’s 1,800 richest people.
Finally, he pledged not to use Article 49.3 of the Constitution, which allows the adoption of budget laws without a parliamentary vote, consolidating the shift towards more open and parliamentary governance. Lecornu stressed that the National Assembly is “more representative than ever of the French people” and that there will be neither a dissolution of Parliament nor early elections.
“The government will propose, we will discuss, you will vote,” he declared, marking an institutional turn that he considered “a new separation of powers between the executive and the legislature.” He called on MPs to exercise their new role and make decisions on behalf of the people.
Lecornu's speech was greeted with applause by former President François Hollande and other Socialists, while it was met with annoyance by Marine Le Pen, who is expected to miss the opportunity to topple the government and lead to early elections that could bring Jordan Bardella to power. For now, she and her allies are forced to reconsider their strategy. / Adapted from “Corriere Della Sera”
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