French Socialist leader extends olive branch to Macron as talks on next government begin

PARIS — The first signs of how the next French government could be formed started to emerge on Friday when the Socialist leader said he was prepared to discuss a compromise with President Emmanuel Macron.

The move, by Olivier Faure, could potentially see the Socialists support a government with Macron’s centrists and the conservatives.

Faure is “ready to discuss all the topics and see what is possible on a short-term basis,” he said on French radio. “We need to find a solution because we can’t let the country grind to a halt for months.”

France was plunged into political crisis this week when the government was toppled barely three months after being formed, raising fears that the instability could trigger financial instability across the eurozone.

Outgoing Prime Minister Michel Barnier, who was supported by the centrists and the conservatives, was ousted over his attempts to push through an austere budget for 2025, with the aim of reducing France’s eye-watering deficits.

Faure is expected to join other opposition leaders in heading to the Elysée Palace on Friday for talks with Macron. The president said on Thursday that he would appoint a new prime minister “in the coming days” who would represent “all the political forces that will join [government], or at least won’t topple it.”

The move from the Socialist party leader is a sign of growing rifts in the pan-left coalition the New Popular Front, only days after they voted against the government with the support of Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Front.

Disagreements between center-left Socialists and their coalition partner the far-left France Unbowed party are an open secret and both have been accused of only sticking together for electoral reasons.

Faure’s comments immediately drew fire from another left-wing coalition partner, the Greens, whose leader, Marine Tondelier, warned the Socialists to “be careful” in talking to Macron.

“Emmanuel Macron is leading the Socialist Party into a trap where they will be stuck with those who neglect the working-class,” she said. Unlike the Socialists, the Greens were not invited to the Elysée by the French president.

“We’ve seen this sort of reneging from the Socialist party and it comes at a strong cost which is paid over a long period of time,” she added.

But any talks between Macron and the Socialists won’t by any means be easy. Faure said Friday he wants concessions on the French president’s flagship pensions reform and a mediator to lead discussions between political parties before a new prime minister is nominated.

Victor Goury-Laffont contributed reporting.