The French government has collapsed after Prime Minister Michel Barnier was ousted by a vote of no confidence.
Members of Parliament voted overwhelmingly to support a motion against him – just three months after he was elected by President Emmanuel Macron.
Opposition parties launched the proposal after the former Brexit negotiator controversially used special powers to implement his budget without a vote.
This is the first time that the country’s government has fallen on a vote of no confidence since 1962.
His ouster would deepen political instability in France, after snap elections in the summer left no party with a majority in parliament.
MPs had to vote yes or abstain in Wednesday’s vote, with 288 votes needed to pass the motion. A total of 331 voted in favor of the proposal.
Both the far left and the left have tabled motions of no confidence after Barnier pushed ahead with social security reforms with a presidential announcement on Monday after failing to garner enough support for the measures.
The left-wing coalition New Popular Front (NFP), which won the majority of seats in the parliamentary elections, has strongly criticized Macron’s decision to appoint centrist Barnier as his replacement.
Alongside the far-right National Rally (RN), it saw Barnier’s budget – which includes €60bn (£49bn) in deficit reduction – as unacceptable.
Before the vote, Barnier had told the National Assembly that voting him out of office would not solve the country’s financial problems.
“We have reached a moment of truth, of responsibility,” he said, adding that “we must look at the facts of our debt”.
“It is not a pleasure that I propose difficult measures.”
Barnier is likely to continue as caretaker while Macron chooses a successor.
Macron will not be directly affected by the result of the vote as France votes for its president separately from its government.
But the fallout has led to growing calls for him to resign before his current term ends in 2027.
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