TODAY, dignitaries from across the world will gather to marvel at the gleaming restoration of Paris’s magnificent Notre Dame Cathedral, with French President Emmanuel Macron proudly showing off the £580million rebuild. However, as Macron displays the rebuilt cathedral’s grandeur, his country is crumbling around him.
Macron’s country is in the midst of a deepening crisis, with a debt of €3.2 trillion, twice the EU limit, and rising interest rates. The crisis has also led to a series of public sector strikes, with hospital workers, air traffic controllers, and others walking out and protests on the streets.
Macron’s country is struggling to find a new prime minister after his previous PM, Michel Barnier, resigned following a no-confidence vote. Barnier’s fall has pushed up interest rates, and bond markets are jittery.
As Macron prepares to welcome US President-elect Donald Trump to Paris, many French people are tired of his showboating and want a leader who can rescue the nation from impending disaster. Polling reveals that two-thirds of the population think that Macron should resign if Barnier loses the confidence vote.
The far-right National Rally leader, Marine Le Pen, and the far-left leader, Jean-Luc Melenchon, both want Macron to step down, with Le Pen calling for presidential elections, saying, “Emmanuel Macron has attacked the foundation walls of the nation for the past seven years.”
Macron’s country is also facing a debt crisis similar to Greece’s in the 2010s if austerity measures are not imposed. The President will struggle to find a new PM who will please enough MPs, and the crisis has serious implications for the EU, as well.