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Explosions in France as Macron Names His Pal Lecornu Prime Minister 

John Mullen

On 8 September, the sleepy minority government of François Bayrou fell. This was the reactionary prime minster who recently expressed sympathy with those who ‘felt we were being flooded with migrants’. Since June 2024, the left has had the biggest grouping within the French National Assembly, but President Macron  is not prepared to respect democracy and appoint a left prime minister. Bayrou is the second right-wing PM to fall since. The only big change he managed was abolishing green regulations on some insecticides.

After eight months in office, he  finally went  too far, presenting a vicious budget which planned over forty billion euros in cuts, and which proposed to abolish two bank holidays. Faced with the threat of a yellow-vest style revolt in the streets by the new ‘Blockade Everything’ mobilisation, with mass strikes, and parliamentary motions of no confidence, the PM preferred himself to call a vote of confidence for 8 September, hoping that either the Socialist Party or the far-right National Rally would shore up his government as they had done before. They didn’t.

Macron immediately announced that the new prime minister will be Sébastien Lecornu, loyal Macronite and Minister for the Army, a well-known champion of bloated military budgets, an opponent of gay marriage and a fan of discreet meetings with fascist Marine Le Pen. The radical-left La France Insoumise, along with the Greens and Communists, are demanding Macron resign or be impeached. According to a poll by Conservative newspaper Le Figaro, 64% of French people want Macron out now.

The Socialist Party was obliged by popular pressure last year to make an electoral pact with forces much further to the left, a pact which succeeded, after the most dynamic left election campaign for decades, in keeping the fascist National Rally out of government. But now PS leaders are sweet-talking Macron. They begged him to name a Prime Minister from among them, and when he didn’t, declared how honoured they felt that the president had phoned their chief, Olivier Faure, an hour before nominating Lecornu! The PS is not saying whether they will vote out the new government, or agree a non-aggression pact: they are still hoping for crumbs. ‘We will listen to the new PM, but we won’t do a belly dance for him’ said Patrick Kanner, PS leader in the Senate, but they are probably rehearsing dance moves as we speak.

Raphael Glucksmann, who led the Socialist Party slate at the last European elections, recently declared that he would never again ally with Mélenchon’s La France Insoumise, even against the fascists. Communist Party and Green Party leaders are not as rotten as that, but they make sure they denounce the ‘extremism’ of the radical Left frequently.

The 10th September saw an inspiring  mass of actions called by the new ‘Blockade Everything’ networks, aimed at bringing Macron down. Dozens of motorways were blockaded, including ring roads around Paris, Bordeaux and Lyon; high schools, factories, hypermarkets and universities were barricaded, while 280 decentralised rallies were held across the country. The Paris rallies were particularly noted for the crowds of dynamic high-school students. Across the country 80,000 police were mobilised, but the only ‘shocking’ incident in Paris was the burning of a Korean restaurant. After a couple of hours showing this fire from every conceivable angle, the TV had to admit it was actually caused by a police tear-gas canister.

There were also strikes on 10 September, even though the national Trade Union Coordinating Committee shamefully called to strike only from 18 September. These are exciting times, and we are hoping that workers, students and Blockade Everything mobilisations will build to a crescendo over the next ten days.

This is a major crisis and the fascists of the National Rally (who have 118 members of parliament) are hoping to gain from it. Their young leader, Jordan Bardella, is wearing posher suits and speaking more often of  the ‘key role of business leaders’. His organisation also denounced the 10 September rebellion.

This week, Macron is  clowning around on the international stage and demanding billions of euros for more spending on war, while the mass media are full of scaremongering about our economy being on the brink of collapse, screaming that only a compromise between left and right can save our beloved country. Talk shows have found their favourite debating topic for the week: is the real problem greedy boomer pensioners?

Millions of people know that the true problem is the 1%. Next Thursday’s strikes, and a rising movement in high schools could be the beginning of a movement that can force Macron out.

[John Mullen is a revolutionary Socialist in the Paris area and a supporter of the France Insoumise. Courtesy: Counterfire, a British socialist organisation that also runs a website.]

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“Let’s Block Everything” Protests Challenge Macron’s Austerity

Ana Vračar

Hundreds of mobilizations, including picket lines and strikes, took place across France on September 10, signaling general rejection of a new wave of austerity policies advanced by the neoliberal camp. Trade unions reported significant participation in multiple sectors, including railways, education, culture, and health – where at least 100 work stoppages occurred during the day.

Grassroots networks estimate that approximately 500,000 people joined the demonstrations, held under the slogan “Let’s Block Everything” (Bloquons tout). Student collectives and Palestine solidarity groups were among those contributing to the day, among many others. Actions took place not only in major cities like Paris and Marseille but also in smaller towns such as Albi and Pau. The day was also marked by a heavy police presence and reports of violence against protesters, including the use of tear gas.

The mobilization came just days after another prime minister appointed by President Emmanuel Macron, François Bayrou, lost a confidence vote in the National Assembly. Macron quickly replaced him with former defense minister Sébastien Lecornu, a representative of the center’s right-wing faction. The appointment irked the public further. Maurizio Coppola of the Italian left party Potere al Popolo, who took part in the actions, told Peoples Dispatch: “Many saw this hasty appointment of a new prime minister as a provocation on the eve of the mobilization.”

Demonstrators also saw Lecornu’s appointment as a sign that Macron continues to pursue policies repeatedly rejected by the public. In a recent speech, France Unbowed (La France Insoumise) leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon highlighted the devastating social impact of neoliberal economic policies, pointing out that thousands of children and hundreds of thousands of people in France are homeless. Poverty and inequality, he described, plague the country. The trade union group Solidaires offered similar reflections on the day of action: “After the fall of the Bayrou government, the head of state’s desire to pursue the same policy in the service of special interests can only exacerbate fiscal and social inequalities and the ecological crisis.”

“He must go”

“Macron is to blame for this situation,” Mélenchon wrote on September 10. “He and his decisions are responsible for the chaos. He makes no effort whatsoever to show that he is receiving or listening to the messages coming from the National Assembly or the country. On the contrary, he brazenly pushes ahead to show that he remains in control of his strange and absurd plans. He must go.”

France Unbowed has campaigned for Macron’s removal since the 2024 national election, when he blocked the progressive New Popular Front (Nouveau Front Populaire) from forming a cabinet despite its electoral result, instead entrusting government formation to a succession of neoliberals. The party renewed its call after Bayrou’s collapse but also threw its weight behind the ongoing grassroots struggles. Coppola noted that activists from France Unbowed were active in preparing demonstrations across communities, helping amplify and link popular demands. “Their elected representatives marched with the protesters, defending them from police violence through their institutional status,” he added.

The role of organized labor

Despite the success of the day of action, questions remain. One concerns the role of labor unions, Coppola suggests. While certain unions and confederations, notably Solidaires, joined the call for September 10, others kept more distance. Branches of the General Confederation of Labor (Confédération générale du travail, CGT) and Workers’ Force (Force Ouvrière) participated in the actions, but their leadership chose to emphasize a strike call for September 18. By doing so, these organizations echoed popular demands against austerity but did not fully align themselves with the grassroots initiative.

The ability of grassroots groups and labor unions to connect over and channel the anger that fueled the “Let’s Block Everything” protests may have an important impact on the mobilization’s long-term success. As Coppola points out, “where strikes and blockades were successful, this was only possible thanks to the presence of organized labor.” However, he also adds that some unions joined the day of action only because rank-and-file members pushed for it, highlighting how bottom-up participation remains vital across the struggle.

Another unresolved question is the feasibility of France Unbowed’s proposal to remove Macron. While such an outcome would potentially be a significant victory against austerity, it would trigger new presidential elections with uncertain results. In 2024, the far-right National Rally (Rassemblement National) secured more votes than the left-progressive alliance, making the prospect of an extreme right president a genuine risk.

Nevertheless, the message of September 10 was unmistakable and is unlikely to fade soon. “The message was clear everywhere: no to the [austerity] financial maneuver, [yes to the] strengthening of public services and workers’ rights, taxing the rich, and above all, the resignation of President Macron,” Coppola concluded.

[Ana Vračar is a health reporter at the People’s Health Dispatch, a fortnightly bulletin published by Peoples Dispatch and the People’s Health Movement. She is the regional coordinator of PHM Europe and Co-Chair of the PHM steering council. Courtesy: Peoples Dispatch, an international media organization with the mission of highlighting voices from people’s movements and organizations across the globe.]