Marine Le Pen delivered a blistering attack on President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday, calling him a “puerile attention-seeker” and accusing his government of turning France into “the sick man of Europe.” Her remarks came just hours before Prime Minister François Bayrou was expected to lose a confidence vote in parliament, marking the second time in less than a year that France’s head of government would be toppled.
With opposition parties united against Bayrou and defections brewing within his own centre-right alliance, the 74-year-old prime minister appeared resigned to defeat. “There are worse things in life than to be at the head of a government and that the government is overthrown,” Bayrou told media outlet Brut.
Bayrou’s probable ouster would leave Macron exposed to a deepening political crisis critics say is of his own making. The president’s decision last year to call snap elections has led to a deadlocked National Assembly and mounting instability. Veteran commentator Alain Duhamel warned that the country faces not just political turmoil, but “a crisis of regime and a crisis of society.”
Macron’s aides have suggested he may appoint a Socialist prime minister to forge an alliance between the left and the centre, potentially reversing his low-tax, business-friendly policies. Olivier Faure, first secretary of the Socialist Party, confirmed his willingness to serve if asked.
Le Pen, meanwhile, rallied supporters in northern France and vowed to challenge any prime minister unwilling to implement National Rally policies. She called for new parliamentary elections to resolve the deadlock, which she said is fueling “anger and despair,” damaging business confidence, and tarnishing France’s reputation abroad.
“Today, through their fault, France is the sick man of Europe,” Le Pen declared, denouncing Macron and “all those who have served him.”
While acknowledging that Bayrou was right to tackle the nation’s “intolerable” debt burden, Le Pen criticized his proposed solutions. She outlined her party’s priorities, including strict immigration curbs she claims would save at least €20 billion annually, cuts in France’s €7 billion yearly contribution to the EU, the creation of an “FBI of fraud” to expose tax and welfare abuses, and an end to what she called “toxic” government programmes like renewable energy investments.
Le Pen also named Jordan Bardella, the National Rally’s 29-year-old chairman, as the party’s candidate for prime minister in the event of an electoral victory. Bardella had nearly secured the role last year when his party led in the first round of voting but fell short after rival parties united in the runoff.
Le Pen herself remains barred from running for office following a corruption conviction last year and could be prevented from contesting the presidency unless she successfully appeals the ruling next year — despite polls placing her in the lead.
