French PM Starts Negotiating With Opository To Prevent Government Collapse

French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou/DOK PHOTO via Instagram @francoisbayrou

JAKARTA - French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou will start a series of negotiations with French political parties on Monday.

Bayrou is trying to prevent his government's collapse in a motion of not believing next week that opposition leaders are bound to fail.

Opposition parties have stated they will bring down a minority government in a September 8 vote, Bayrou announced unexpectedly last week as he seeks to push for an unpopular plan to cut the budget by 2026.

The French stock market and bonds fell sharply last week following Bayrou's announcement, but recovered on Monday, September 1.

As reported by Reuters, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said France was solid, but the risk of government falling in the euro zone should be feared. France has the second largest economy in the euro zone.

Bayrou is scheduled to start negotiations with the Communist Party on Monday afternoon local time, before meeting with other parties on weekends.

The chairman of the opposition Socialist Party, Olivier Faure, said on Sunday that the decision to oppose Bayrou was "definite".

Faure insisted he considered Bayrou untrustworthy and his party will meet him this week solely out of respect for state institutions.

The Socialist Party has submitted a counter-proposal for the budget, which will cut the deficit by 21.7 billion euros next year, half of what Bayrou says is needed. The Socialist Party's plan will include higher taxes for rich and big businesses.

The extreme right-handed National Rally Party (RN), whose voice is equally crucial if the Bayrou government wants to defend itself, also insists it will vote against it, as will extreme left-wing parties such as France Unbowed, the Greens, and the Communist Party.

Parties that say they will vote against Bayrou together have enough votes to trigger the government's fall.

Speaking to Radio Classique broadcaster ECB Lagarde said he was watching the French bond spread situation.

French banks have come under pressure, but Lagarde says France's banking system is in a better position than the 2008 financial crisis.