By Najete Michell and Paul Taylor
President Macron’s choice of Michel Barnier as French Prime Minister is an escalation of his attack on the working class and oppressed in France.
The demonstrations of hundreds of thousands across France on Saturday, September 7th against Macron’s parliamentary coup started the next phase of a protracted class struggle over who will pay to resolve the crisis of the French economy.
Macron’s political plan
In the June 10th European election support for Macron’s party plummeted to 14.6% and Le Pen’s Rassemblement National (RN) topped the poll with 31.3%.
Macron chose to immediately dissolve the National Assembly. He hoped to create a new parliamentary majority via an alliance with the RN to stop the left.
Macron cynically called the parliamentary elections with the shortest possible window for an election campaign – three weeks – expecting the left to be fatally weakened by fighting the election as competing parties as they did in the European election.
New Popular Front NPF
In the European elections the Socialist Party, the Greens and the Communist Party refused to continue to fight under the united left banner of NUPES, which had denied Macron his absolute majority in the 2022 general election, coming second in the polls ahead of Le Pen.
They were unhappy that La France Insoumise (LFI) had emerged as the largest party in parliament on the left. This confirmed the trend of the 2022 presidential election. Mélenchon, the leader of the LFI won 21.95%. The Socialist Party candidate only won 1.75% and the Communist 2.28%. The strength of the LFI made it more difficult for the other left parties to make compromises on austerity and racism with Macron.
Immediately after the dissolution of the National Assembly LFI led the call for a new left electoral alliance. Much to the astonishment and alarm of Macron and others on the right, the left quickly united under a new banner – the New Popular Front NPF. The NPF programme of more public investment and increased taxes on big business and the rich was essentially the same as the tried and tested successful earlier NUPES platform.
Stopping Le Pen in the 2024 general election
Whilst Macron saw the big increase in vote share for Le Pen as an opportunity, the left and large sections of the population were horrified and were galvanised into action, especially youth, black voters, the cities and the quartiers populaires.
The July 2024 general election saw the highest turnout since 1997. The RN won 33.2% in the first round and just over ten million votes. There was a real possibility that the RN would be the largest party in parliament and with support from some sections of the right win the post of prime minister.
Before the second round, the left stood down in seats where it came third and urged voters to use their vote to defeat the RN. The Macronists and other right parties were less united in their opposition to Le Pen. Some abstained and others voted for Le Pen, but enough voted to stop Le Pen. The RN and its allies were pushed back to become the third largest bloc in parliament with 143 MPs. The left NPF won 193 seats and Macron’s party was reduced to 168.
Attack on democracy
Macron’s nomination of Barnier as PM is one more flagrant example of the president’s contempt for democracy.
In selecting Barnier the president has trampled on the wishes of voters and parliamentary convention The left came first in the recent general election. Macron’s party came third. Barnier is a member of the conservative Les Républicain (LR) party which only won 6.57%.
As president, Macron has not been a firewall against the politics of Le Pen, he has been a facilitator. He has tried to defeat the opposition from the people to his policies by becoming more authoritarian and by whipping up racism.
Macron has exploited the undemocratic French constitution to undermine parliament and repress protest. He has become a monarch president in the eyes of many. When his party lost its parliamentary majority after the 2022 general election, he repeatedly pushed through unpopular legislation by presidential decrees under Article 49.3 to avoid losing votes in parliament. After his party came third in the July 2024 GE he instructed his ministers to continue to govern the country as if nothing had changed. Previously, Macron had used the police to repress protests over the environment, pensions and French backing for Israel in Gaza.
Macron’s project
Macron’s overriding purpose is to advance the interests of capital. He aims to overcome the decline of the French economy and profitability by increasing the rate of exploitation of the working class.
However, the deficit continues to grow as government revenues decline. As elsewhere where austerity has been applied there is no sign that the private sector will invest more until wages and the welfare state as a share of the economy fall even further. Under Barnier, the minimum wage and unemployment benefits will also be hit.
Macron has blamed the problems of the French economy on the population for living too long and not working enough hours and for wanting a too generous welfare state.
On Macron’s watch wealth has increasingly flowed to the rich and big business. His demand that the French ‘work harder’ and longer is opposed by the vast majority.
His central policy of raising the age of retirement was subsequently opposed by more than two-thirds of the population and met by a huge wave of mass protests over many months led by the left and the trade unions.
Macron’s policy of austerity is the main root cause of the political crisis in France.
His party has lost two general elections and a European election in the last two years. He was only re-elected president [with the lowest turnout since 1969], with the support of millions of voters who wanted to stop Le Pen.
Convergence on the right
Macron and Le Pen are united in their determination to prevent the left from having its candidate, Lucie Castets, for PM to be put to a vote in parliament.
A prospect that would have seen an alternative to austerity and racism placed at the centre of national political debate. A vote in parliament for or against the programme of the left NPF would also have revealed that the RN is a fake opposition to Macron’s policy of austerity and falling living standards for the many.
The selection of Barnier was given the green light by the RN who will abstain on his confirmation by parliament. Like Macron, he is committed to austerity and the use of racism to divide and confuse the people. His call this week for a new immigration ministry signals his intersection with the politics of Le Pen. His time as PM will further legitimise the politics of the far right and make a Le Pen presidency in 2027 much more likely.
What now for the left?
The left has only held the French presidency for 18 years since the founding of the 5th Republic in 1958. The office of prime minister has been held by the left for slightly less time.
In the July 2024 general election, the New Popular Front NPF became the largest group in parliament. After the disaster of the Hollande presidency, LFI saved the left from becoming a small marginal force in France. Mélenchon almost knocked out Le Pen in the first round of the 2017 and 2022 presidential elections. Regrettably, by standing candidates who were guaranteed to win tiny votes, sections of the left placed their opposition to LFI ahead of their opposition to Le Pen.
A united front of the left is faced with a protracted struggle to turn the population’s hostility to the policy of austerity into votes to form a government.
The rise of La France Insoumise as the largest force on the left makes it more likely the struggle will be successful.
Transcending the damaging barrier between the so-called political and economic struggle is critical. A failure to unite the political left and the trade unions will only boost the power of the right.
La France Insoumise (LFI)
LFI has become the leading force on the French left because it has consistently opposed the politics of austerity and racism. It has stood firm in solidarity with the Palestinians, calling for a cease-fire in the face of baseless charges of antisemitism. It has also called for peace in Ukraine and for France to leave NATO.
The conduct of LFI in the united front has been exemplary. When Macron claimed that the prospect of LFI ministers was the reason why he didn’t call for the left candidate for prime minister, LFI exposed Macron’s deception by saying it would not take up ministerial positions. LFI led the calls for the creation of the left NUPES electoral coalition in 2022 and the New Popular Front coalition in 2024. It also was the first to call for a united front against Le Pen in the second round of the July general election.
LFI has advanced by combining the struggle on the streets with the fight in parliament. Its parliamentary tactics have been pursued to strengthen the class struggle not to subordinate it. Its MPs attend and address the mass protests.
The united front of the left will continue to come under pressure from without and within.
Big business, the billionaire-controlled media and the right – of all shades – are united in their rejection of the left. Sections of big business are also increasingly saying that given the choice of Le Pen or the left it will back the former.
The Socialist Party is divided with a large minority pressing for compromises with Macron. The Communist Party leadership has also repeatedly turned its fire on LFI.
Following the success of the first left parliamentary coalition – NUPES – in the 2022 general election the SP, the Greens and the CP abandoned it hoping to boost the fortunes of their parties and reduce the weight of LFI. The surge of support for the far right in the European elections led to pressure from the party’s rank and file and left voters to create a left coalition the New Popular Front NPF including LFI.
Uniting the struggles
Political instability in France deepens by the day. The political crisis is developing as a crisis of the Republic with the direct participation of Le Pen and the RN. The latter have declared they will vote to defeat Barnier in parliament if he does not move in their direction.
Macron’s ability to impose austerity on the French has rested on his violation of the democratic process and by ignoring the election results. But, the polls show the majority against Macron and his policies continues to grow.
The president shows no sign of turning back from this path without mass pressure. La France Insoumise is calling for his resignation by starting a process of impeachment on Tuesday 17 September. As Macron’s nominee for PM, Barnier will also be confronted with a motion of censure in parliament.
The battle for Macron’s impeachment will also see more mass protests on the streets again on September 21st, alongside a national petition calling for his resignation.
There is no road to victory for the left which involves compromises with Macron on austerity and racism.
More than that, victory for the left will rest on its ability to lead and unite all the social struggles against the right and put forward an economic policy which will improve the living standards and quality of life of the vast majority of the people.