French Prime Minister Michel Barnier arrives to deliver a speech during a debate on two motions of no-confidence against the French government, tabled by the alliance of left-wing parties the "Nouveau Front Populaire" (New Popular Front - NFP) and the far-right Rassemblement National party, after the use by French government of the article 49.3, a special clause in the French Constitution, to push the budget bill through the National Assembly without a vote by lawmakers, at the National Assembly in Paris, France, December 4, 2024. REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier
PARIS (Reuters) -French President Emmanuel Macron will appoint a new prime minister in the coming days whose top priority will be getting a 2025 budget adopted by parliament, he said on Thursday after the government was toppled by lawmakers.
Michel Barnier, a veteran conservative, became the shortest-serving prime minister in modern French history when he resigned on Thursday after parliament voted him out over his fiscal plans, barely three months after he was appointed.
