French Opposition Parties Challenge Government Over Mercosur Deal

Political Reactions to the Mercosur Agreement

PARIS, Jan 9 (Reuters) - France's far-right and far-left opposition parties will launch no-confidence motions against France's weak minority government in response to the likely approval on Friday of the EU's Mercosur trade deal.

The far-left France Unbowed (LFI) party said it would file a no-confidence motion on Friday morning, while the far-right National Rally (RN) said it would also launch one against the European Commission chief in Brussels.

The no-confidence motions underline some of the domestic political blowback French President Emmanuel Macron's government, led by Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu, faces over the trade deal as it battles to pass an already-late 2026 budget through a truculent parliament.

Opposition Parties' Actions

It seems unlikely the RN and LFI will muster enough votes in parliament to oust the government. Still, their threats underline the perilous political tightrope Macron's administration continues to walk just over a year before the 2027 presidential election. 

Macron says France will vote against the accord. However, the treaty only requires qualified majority support among EU member states for the deal to be signed by the European Commission and the Mercosur bloc. The European Parliament would then need to ratify the accord.

In a post on X late on Thursday, RN party president Jordan Bardella said Macron's pledge not to vote in favour of the deal was mere posturing amounting to "a betrayal of French farmers."

In a separate X post, RN party chief Marine Le Pen called on Macron "to announce, if necessary, the suspension of France's contribution to the European Union budget."

LFI lower house chief Mathilde Panot said on X that France had been "humiliated" by Brussels and on the world stage.

"Lecornu and Macron must go," she wrote.

DEAL LOOKS SET TO PASS

Support and Opposition to the Deal

EU nations are expected on Friday to approve the signing of the bloc's largest ever free trade accord with South American group Mercosur.

Supporters, including Germany and Spain, argue it is a vital part of an EU push to unlock new markets to offset business lost from U.S. tariffs and to reduce reliance on China.

Opponents led by France, the European Union's largest agricultural producer, say the agreement will jack up imports of cheap food products, undercutting domestic farmers. 

Protests by French Farmers

French farmers staged a new protest on Friday against the deal. The Confederation Paysanne farmers' lobby group had tractors driving slowly to block traffic on the main highway route around Paris on Friday, with one tractor carrying the slogan 'Stop the EU-Mercosur Agreement!'

(Reporting by Sybille de la Hamaide, Gabriel Stargardter and Charlotte Van Campenhout; Editing by Richard Lough and Toby Chopra)