Le Pen Supports Emergency Law for Budget Roll-Over

PARIS (Reuters) – French far-right leader Marine Le Pen announced that her National Rally (RN) party would support an emergency law to roll over the 2024 budget's tax-and-spend provisions into the next year for stopgap financing.

Prime Minister Michel Barnier and his government are anticipated to lose a no-confidence vote later today, intensifying a political crisis and casting doubt on the possibility of passing a 2025 budget by year-end.

The constitution permits passing a special law in parliament that continues the tax-raising and spending provisions from the current budget, preventing a U.S.-style government shutdown.

In the National Assembly, Le Pen stated her party would "obviously vote in favour" of the special law if the next government opts for it. In response, her opponents accused the RN of creating unnecessary chaos with their efforts to oust Barnier.