France’s minority government is on the brink of collapse after Prime Minister Michel Barnier used special powers to force through his budget without a vote in parliament.
Furious opposition parties said they would back a no-confidence motion to oust the former Brexit negotiator in a vote that could take place as early as Wednesday.
Barnier opted to push through controversial reforms to social security by invoking presidential decree after failing to win enough support for the measures.
France faces months of political instability as government nears collapse
France has been beset by political uncertainty since President Macron called snap elections over the summer which resulted in a hung parliament where no party had an absolute majority.
While Barnier had made last-minute concessions to the social security funding bill – which sought to rein in France’s spiralling deficit – his efforts were insufficient to get it over the line.
