PARIS: France’s newly formed government will seek a confidence vote from parliament on Tuesday, a step that would allow it to press ahead with President Francois Hollande’s business reforms to spur growth without having to risk a separate vote.
New Prime Minister Manuel Valls approved the vote during his first cabinet meeting as his reshuffled team of 16 Socialist ministers strives to present a united front after the Greens party broke away from the coalition over energy policy.
Hollande has staked his credibility on plans for a so-called “responsibility pact” that offers payroll tax cuts to companies in exchange for promises of more hiring, after failing to lower unemployment during his first two years in power.
But the reform may prove difficult to implement in full, as both unions and employers doubt companies will agree to setting measurable hiring targets in exchange for an estimated ¤10bn ($14bn) in tax breaks, as Hollande has intended.
“On Tuesday afternoon, the prime minister will present a general policy speech and there will be a vote of confidence,” government spokesman Stephane Le Foll told a news briefing after the cabinet’s first meeting on Friday.
“We are in a new stage, a second stage of (Hollande’s) five year mandate,” Le Foll said. “It’s the general policy speech of the prime minister that will outline the stakes and the overall themes.”
Hollande originally intended to tie the vote of confidence to a subsequent vote on the responsibility pact.
Reuters
