French far right threatens to vote for dissolution ‘if budget cuts spending power’

French far right party le Rassemblement National has threatened a vote of no confidence in the government if the forthcoming Budget “cuts personal spending power”.

The 2025 Budget is now set to be passed from the Assemblée Nationale to the Senate for approval. Prime Minister Michel Barnier has not ruled out using the controversial article 49.3 to force the bill through parliament without a vote, in the event of a lack of consensus. Last week, he even said that the use of the article would “probably” be needed.

But using article 49.3 is risky, as it means that opposition MPs may table a vote of no confidence against the government, which could lead to its dissolution.

Read also: France’s 2025 budget will ‘probably’ be forced through without vote, says PM
Read also: Explainer: what is France’s article 49.3? 

‘Unacceptable to hit businesses and pensioners’

Head of the RN Marine Le Pen told RTL today (November 20): “We will not accept that the French public’s purchasing power is cut even further. It’s a red line. If it’s passed, we’ll vote for dissolution without any difficulty.

“The problem is not [article] 49.3,” she continued. “The problem is what will be in the budget…‘We have not been heard or listened to. 

“The proof is that the Prime Minister has invited me [to a meeting] next Monday. I'm going to tell him that the €6 billion increase in the price of electricity that he is considering is unacceptable to us…it's unacceptable not to make savings in areas of government operations [and] to hit individuals…businesses and pensioners,” Ms Le Pen said, adding that she believed Mr Barnier would not respect these boundaries.

 The RN leader is not the only RN MP to suggest that the possible use of 49.3 could lead to threatened government dissolution. 

President of the RN, Jordan Bardella, has also said that the government is “on its way” to dissolution, while Philippe Olivier and Sébastien Chenu have also suggested a similar position. 

This is significant, as any motion de censure (vote of no confidence) would need the votes of the Assemblée’s 126 RN MPs to pass, given the balance of power in the chamber.

Read also: Explained: What is a motion de censure in French politics? 

Mr Barnier has already survived one vote of no confidence in the Assemblée nationale (in early October), brought by the left-wing alliance Nouveau Front Populaire (NFP) after it failed to win support from any centrist or right and far-right MPs.

The motion received 197 votes, far from the 289 (an absolute majority of MPs) needed for it to pass and force the government to resign. At the time, left wing MPs said they knew the motion had “no chance of passing”, and that they used the vote as an opportunity to criticise Mr Barnier’s policies and highlight the government’s weakness, they said.

Read also: Vote of no confidence against French PM brought by left is widely rejected 

Similarly, a vote of no confidence was brought against the government not long before that, when Elisabeth Borne was prime minister, after the use of article 49.3 in 2023 to force through the highly controversial pension reforms. Then, Ms Borne narrowly missed being toppled from her position.