French political life unsettled as Macron's PM resigns

French political life unsettled as Macron's PM resigns

The left-wing coalition is on the brink of disintegration, as members of the Nupes are unwilling to remain in the largest left-wing alliance. Meanwhile, the prime minister submitted her resignation, which was rejected by the president.

WORLD POLITICS JUNE 21. 2022 15:48

Nupes, the left-wing coalition, is being torn apart by various disagreements, with conflicts erupting on the day after the parliamentary elections. Although they have managed to secure a large number of seats (133), the coalition is unlikely to stay together. The president of the France Unbowed party, Jean-Luc Melenchon, also heading Nupes, has called on the parties to remain in the alliance in order to form a united parliamentary group and become the largest opposition group to the ruling party.

Merging the parties into Nupes and a single parliamentary group would send a strong signal and prepare for the future in the face of a breakthrough made by the far right, Clementine Autain, MP of France Unbowed, pointed out on Twitter.

However, the green party, the socialists and the communists rejected the proposal.

Socialist MPs unanimously share the view that a united parliamentary group does not make much sense politically, while the communist party considers Mr Melenchon’s proposal a bad idea, saying that it would not be wise to cover up differing views between the four political parties.

Valerie Rabault, the leader of the socialist parliamentary group opined that it would be a mistake to group the leftist parties into one bloc. She wrote on Twitter that the left is characterised by diversity whose elimination would be a mistake.

BFMTV points out that Jean-Luc Mélenchon has a good reason to try to keep the coalition together at all costs. If it disintegrates, his Unbowed France party would not be the strongest opposition force in parliament. It would have to concede that role to Marine Le Pen’s National Rally, as the right-wing party has sent 89 members to parliament, compared to the leftist party gaining 72 seats. Within Nupes, the socialists won 26, the communists 12, and the greens 23 seats in the second round on 19 June.

Meanwhile, there is much confusion within Emmanuel Macron’s government. Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne, appointed just a few weeks ago, has submitted her resignation, which the president did not accept, BFMTV writes, citing news from the Elysee Palace. According to press reports, Mr Macron rejected Ms Borne’s resignation so that the government could continue to focus and act on its responsibilities. The paper points out that there are three senior politicians in the Borne government who have not gained seats in the parliament, including Amelie de Montchalin, Minister for Ecological Transition and Territorial Cohesion, Brigitte Bourguignon, Minister for Solidarity and Health, and Justine Benin, Secretary of State for the Sea. The paper suggests that they should, therefore, also resign from their posts.

WORLD POLITICS

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coalition breaks up, elisabeth borne, emmanuel macron, france, nupes, PM resigns