Press
France is facing new elections and the political landscape is tense. Warnings of economic consequences are growing louder.
Paris – In the short campaign for the national elections in France, which are scheduled for June 30 following the European elections, warning voices are trying to warn potential voters of parties on the right and left ends of the party spectrum, but in many places they are falling on deaf ears. In the eyes of the incumbent Prime Minister, however, France, which is already financially troubled, could not only be strengthened by National Rallybut also by the new left-wing alliance Nouveau Front Populaire.
The background to the dissolution of Parliament and the new election announced is that the electoral alliance Besoin d’Europe, which also includes the liberal Renaissance-Party of French President Emmanuel Macron heard at the European elections had received just 14 percent of the vote. The alliance thus lagged far behind the strong election result of the right-wing populist Rassemblement National.
Election campaign in France: Attal warns against competitors’ economic policies
That Macron’s centrist government could face another electoral defeat, Current opinion polls also suggestFor example, at the beginning of the week, the Timethat Macron’s electoral alliance Ensemble is currently in third place with 18 percent in a survey by the opinion research institute Ifop. According to the current figures, the strongest force would be Marine Le Pen’s right-wing populist Rassemblement National with 33 percent, and the left-wing alliance NFP would be in second place with 28 percent.
Renaissance Prime Minister Gabriel Attal warned on Friday that both parties could pose an economic threat to France. The French newspaper The World quoted the politician as warning that the programs of the left-wing coalition and the right-wing populists could be harmful to the majority of France’s population. In addition, it was “laughable” that one had to explain that one wanted to boost the purchasing power of the French and at the same time planned “massive tax increases”. With this, Attal was alluding primarily to the political plans of the left-wing alliance NFP.
Role of companies in French election: Companies fear the right-wing populists and remain silent
In conversation with the Mirror Ross McInnes, chairman of the board of directors of aircraft equipment manufacturer Safran, also an important representative of France’s economy, warned, but mainly addressed the plans and attitudes of Le Pen’s Rassemblement National. The party is obsessed with “looking at everything from the perspective of immigration” and with this attitude shines “through economic ignorance and contradictions”.
According to the opinion of the Mirror However, McInnes is one of the few French business leaders who actually openly warn about the consequences of the growing influence of right-wing populists, while many companies are currently keeping quiet about political messages. Handelsblatt an expert who explains that it is simply a matter of many companies shying away from confrontation with a party that would also be elected by their customers and employees.
French election at a bad time: EU also has the country under observation
France cannot afford any more economic problems at the moment, and not only because of the economic difficulties in the country. Only this week the country was in a EU-A list of countries has emerged that have significantly exceeded the debt limits set by the union of states and may soon have to face proceedings that could result in further fines. According to the EU Commission, the country’s new debt currently stands at 5.5 percent of gross domestic product, and its total debt is a full 110 percent. The permissible limits for new debt are 3 percent and for total debt 60 percent.
The two rounds of voting in France will take place on June 30 and July 7 at the beginning of the French summer holidays. How the complicated French electoral system, which does not allow for postal voting, can influence the outcome is also a concern for many. (saka with AFP/dpa)
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