French PM Bayrou to hold high-stakes confidence vote ahead of budget debate

French Prime Minister François Bayrou will put his government’s survival on the line early next month by holding a high-stakes confidence vote ahead of a debate on his unpopular budget proposal, Report informs via Politico.

Bayrou said at a press conference Monday that he will convene lawmakers for an extraordinary meeting on September 8, two weeks before they were set to return to work, in the hopes they can at least agree that France’s dire financial situation needs rectifying.

“When the house is burning or when you are about to sink, you have to acknowledge the situation,” Bayrou said. “I will not let our country sink into this risk, because it is our freedom that is at stake.”

The prime minister last month unveiled an aggressive €43.8 billion budget squeeze for next year to bring the 2026 budget deficit down to a projected 4.6 percent of gross domestic product.

But the proposal, which also slashes two public holidays, sparked fury among opposition parties, some of whom vowed to topple Bayrou if he forged ahead without significant changes.

Bayrou must also contend with the threat of massive demonstrations and a nationwide shutdown set for September 10.

By calling a confidence vote before the protests and the French legislature's return to business, Bayrou is effectively choosing to accelerate his fate and face the risk of collapse head-on.

"There are moments in life when only a calculated risk can allow you to escape a more serious risk,” Bayrou said. “It is a matter of the survival of our state, the image of our nation, and each and every family."