Macron calls for cross-party talks to form new government

French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday, December 9, called cross-party talks aimed at “forming or making possible a government of national interest” after the ouster of Prime Minister Michel Barnier triggered a political crisis. Party leaders were invited to Macron’s Elysee Palace office for 2:00 pm (French time) on Tuesday, the presidency said, in a departure from Macron’s previous method of meeting leaders individually.

Macron’s office said that only those who had “shown they placed themselves in a framework of compromise” had been called upon for Tuesday’s talks – appearing to exclude the far-right Rassemblement National (RN) and hard-left La France Insoumise (LFI). Initial talks would aim “to make progress on an agreement about the method” to find consensus, the Elysée said.

Macron’s call for a broad-based meeting suggests a new executive will not be put together quickly, disappointing calls to move fast from allies including Assemblée Nationale President Yaël Braun-Pivet. “Each of us will have to take a step towards the other,” Green leader Marine Tondelier had said earlier Monday as she arrived for talks with Macron – adding that it was up to the president “to offer something that isn’t just a continuation of his policies.”

Some have called for Macron, 46, to himself resign and trigger a new presidential poll. But a defiant Macron last week said that he planned to serve out the remainder of his term, vowing to produce “30 months of useful action” and promising to name a new prime minister in the “coming days.”

Last week far-right and left-wing lawmakers joined efforts to oust the minority government of Prime Minister Michel Barnier in a historic no-confidence vote following a standoff over an austerity budget.

The successful parliamentary no-confidence vote, a first in more than six decades, deepened a political crisis and sparked calls for Macron, 46, to step down and call early elections. A defiant Macron said last week he planned to serve out the remainder of his term, vowing “30 months of useful action” and promising to name a new prime minister in the “coming days.”

At the weekend he had a brief respite from the domestic political upheaval, hosting world leaders including US President-elect Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for the re-opening of Notre-Dame cathedral in Paris after a devastating fire in 2019.

Macron is now under huge pressure to form a government that can survive a no-confidence vote and pass a budget for next year in a bid to limit political and economic turmoil. It took the French president more than 50 days to choose Barnier, from the LR party, following inconclusive legislative elections in the summer that resulted in a tripartite Assemblée.

‘Can’t go on like this’

Allies have urged Macron to move quickly this time. “We can’t go on like this,” Macron’s centrist ally François Bayrou said on Sunday, warning the French did not want uncertainty to continue. Bayrou heads the MoDem party, which is allied to Macron. He has been tipped as a possible contender for prime minister. “If I can help us get through this, I will,” he said.

However many do not support his candidacy. “Mr. Bayrou’s political line did not win the legislative elections,” Tondelier told broadcaster RTL ahead of Monday’s meeting with Macron. “We need a personality who is compatible with the left,” added Raphaël Glucksmann, founder of progressive left-wing movement Place Publique, adding he was hoping to bring on board Communist and Green MPs.

The left-wing Nouveau Front Populaire (NFP), which was put together to prevent the far-right from coming to power, emerged as the largest bloc in the Assemblée Nationale after the summer elections. The broad alliance includes LFI, the Socialists, Communists and Greens.

Its leaders have long insisted Macron should appoint a prime minister from their ranks. The president earlier ruled that out. Macron – who has hoped to prise the Socialists away from their pact with the LFI – received a boost when Socialist leader Olivier Faure said he was ready to negotiate with the president’s centrists and the right. LFI’s veteran leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon said his party had given the Socialists “no mandate” to negotiate a deal with Macron. LFI turned down an invitation to meet with Macron on Monday.

The far-right National Rally (RN) has not so far been invited to talks. Nevertheless, RN head Jordan Bardella has already demanded a meeting with the future prime minister. “You can’t pretend we’re not here,” he said.

Barnier, prime minister for only three months, remains in charge on a caretaker basis until a new government is appointed.