Calay News
The government of French President Emmanuel Macron is facing two motions of censure filed in the National Assembly in response to the pension reform adopted by decree on Thursday, which did not pass through a vote in the chamber. Unions have staged blockades in Paris, following a night of riots in the capital and other French cities.
The first motion has been signed by 91 deputies from various parties and is led by the small centrist group Independent Liberties, Overseas, and Territories (LIOT). The second motion of censure has been presented by the leader of the extreme right, Marine Le Pen, and has received the support of the other 87 deputies of her party, the Rassemblement Nationale (RN). The pension reform will raise the retirement age from 62 to 64.
The government’s decision to activate Article 49.3 of the Constitution to push through the bill has triggered spontaneous demonstrations in different cities that degenerated into riots. The Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, has pointed out that although “there were no serious incidents” because there were no serious injuries, the forces of law and order had to act and carried out 310 arrests, of which 258 were in Paris.
Should any of the motions of censure obtain a majority in the Assembly, the government would fall, and the political crisis could lead to an early call for legislative elections.
