The text submitted by the left to overthrow Élisabeth Borne was defeated. This motion of censure should be followed by around ten others during the budgetary debates which begin in mid-October.
A failure without much surprise for this 18th try. The Nupes motion of censure was rejected in the National Assembly on the night of Friday to Saturday with 193 votes to overthrow the government of Élisabeth Borne, far from the 289 votes necessary.
The voices of the National Rally which joined those of the left were therefore not enough. The Republicans would have had to join forces for this motion to be a chance to shake the executive.
A mess of 49.3s and motions of censure in the coming weeks
This motion responded to Élisabeth Borne, who released the first 49.3 of the season on Wednesday evening on the public finance programming law. This institutional cartridge, which allows a text to be adopted without a vote, should multiply in the coming weeks with the study of budgetary texts in the National Assembly.
Élisabeth Borne had already confirmed on RTL early September “certainly resort to it this fall because our country needs a budget”.
And for good reason: parliamentary custom dictates that the vote on financial texts is a sign of support for the majority.
“We inaugurate the season of popular censorship”
Suffice to say that the LR, the RN and the Nupes do not intend to give the government a discharge. Which bodes well for around ten 49.3s for Élisabeth Borne and therefore as many opportunities to file motions of censure each time.
Mathilde Panot did not pretend.
“Élisabeth Borne opens the season of authoritarian 49.3, we inaugurate that of popular censorship!”, explained the president of the rebellious deputies Thursday at the end of the day on X (ex Twitter).
Concern over a motion of censure on immigration
But the executive is less worried about a vote on a motion of censure during the budget than during the future immigration bill. This text, which arouses the ire of the right but also of part of the majority, could end up being adopted without a vote by 49.3.
The Republicans have already indicated that they could table their own motion of censure on this occasion and probably consolidate a large part of the opposition.
Something to worry about in high places. The only motion of censure which had truly endangered Élisabeth Borne was a transpartisan text to overthrow her on pension reform. The Prime Minister had only saved her position by 9 votes.