French President Emmanuel Macron is holding meetings with leaders of left, centrist, and right-wing parties to form a new "government that reflects the common interest" after the country's parliament approved a vote of no confidence in Michel Barnier's cabinet.
On Friday morning, consultations are scheduled for the French leader with representatives from centrist parties "Renaissance," "Horizons," and "Democratic Movement."
Later, Macron is expected to meet with members of the Socialist Party, including its First Secretary Olivier Faure, followed by delegates from the "Republicans."
Representatives from the far-right party "National Rally" led by Marine Le Pen and the leftist "France Unbowed" party of Jean-Luc Mélenchon were not invited to the Élysée Palace.
In a video address to the nation the day before, the president promised to announce the name of the new prime minister "in the coming days."
According to Macron, the new government should represent "all political forces destined to govern the country, so that representatives of the political spectrum can join its work or, at the very least, agree not to derail it."
It is unlikely that a prime minister will be appointed before Monday, and it will probably take some time before the full composition of the new government is known.
In his speech on Thursday, Emmanuel Macron did not take responsibility for the ousting of Barnier's cabinet but sharply criticized his opponents.
In a television interview, far-right leader Marine Le Pen stated that the new government will have little chance of survival.
"The risk is that if the President of the Republic dissolves (the parliament) again in July, September, or October of next year, we will find ourselves in a similar situation."
Leader of "France Unbowed," Jean-Luc Mélenchon, criticized Macron in an interview for not acknowledging the results of "the French vote for change", having previously dissolved parliament and called for early legislative elections in June, which left him without a majority.
"France is a completely special country. It changes only when necessary," he said. "In the legislative elections, one group won by a large margin: the New People's Front," said Mélenchon, referring to the broad coalition of leftist parties that took first place but did not gain a majority.
The French government collapsed on Wednesday evening after Prime Minister Barnier employed a rarely used constitutional mechanism to push through a controversial budget for 2025 without parliamentary approval. Barnier himself argued that this was necessary to maintain "stability" amid deep political divisions.
However, the proposed austerity budget – a reduction of 40 billion euros in spending and a 20 billion euro tax increase – only intensified resistance, especially in the lower house, and the overall political confrontation.
As a result, both the left and right wings of the National Assembly jointly voted for the no-confidence motion against Barnier's cabinet. The proposal was supported by 331 deputies out of 577 lawmakers. A minimum of 288 votes was required.
Barnier and his ministers will remain in power as a caretaker government until a new cabinet is appointed, according to a statement from the Élysée Palace.