The French president estimates that he will find a new prime minister until Friday night as, as the outgoing prime minister who completed the consultations with party leaders on Wednesday, there is an “absolute majority” of MPs who are opposed. It remains unclear who will be the new prime minister, which party will make what concession and what common ground is among the parties that will support the new government.
As shown by the information leaked Wednesday night, many expressed a desire to present a budget plan to the new cabinet on Monday, the last deadline to be adopted by the House by the end of the year. In the meantime, two big taboos of Macron broke.
The two broken taboos
The first was broken by Eduardo Philip, a former prime minister of Macron (2017-20), calling for early presidential elections. He was the first of Macron’s camp to invite him to leave early. Contrary to the far -right and far -left who are demanding here and now the president’s resignation, Philip spoke of a “coordinated, decent process” in the “time the president himself will choose, after the budget is adopted”.
This means, according to French analysts, that the possible resignation of Macron has now entered the table in order to organize early presidential election in the first half of 2026 (instead of April 2027). As Philip said, this will prevent “prolonging the crisis for another 18 months”.
It was preceded by Gabriel Atal, a former prime minister of Macron (2024) and the current secretary general of his party, Renaissance, stating that he “no longer understands the president’s choices”. Many people believe that all this is indications that Macron is isolated in his camp, although Atal was subsequently negatively positioned on the possible resignation of the president because “in the future, no president will be able to keep.”
A third former prime minister of Macron, Elizabeth Born (2022-24), the current Minister of Education, broke a second taboo of “Macronie”, as Macronism calls derogatory in France-demanding that the 20th pension be postponed to 20 Presidency Macron. Among the main changes is the increase in retirement age from 62 to 64 years gradually to 2030.
“If it is a prerequisite for the stability of the country,” let the retirement reform be suspended to “discuss it again during the next presidential election,” Born said. The unexpected reform had been adopted by Article 49.3 of the Constitution that allows the government to pass a law by bypassing the House. The Left and the unions have positively accepted the Burn proposal to suspend pension reform.
Concessions to the budget
Prime Minister Sebasten Lecorni is willing to reduce the public deficit in 2026 twice less than his predecessor, François Bairou, in order to consent to the House on the budget with the aim of adopting it before December 31.
For this to happen, a new Prime Minister and Government must be designated before the end of the week so that the Council of Ministers will meet on Monday (13/10) and to ratify the existing version of the budget plan to begin examining the relevant Parliamentary Committee on Wednesday (15/10). If this date is lost, France will be forced to start in 2026 without budget and, as in January 2025, to pass a specific law on the continuation of state functions.
In order not to resort to this extraordinary measure for a second consecutive year, it must urgently stabilize its political situation. Everything will depend not only on the person that Macron chooses for prime minister but also on the concessions.
