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| Government Survives Vote of Confidence in France | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| PARIS — France’s Socialist government survived a confidence vote in the National Assembly on Thursday, two days after it forced through a contentious package of economic measures without a ballot. | PARIS — France’s Socialist government survived a confidence vote in the National Assembly on Thursday, two days after it forced through a contentious package of economic measures without a ballot. |
| The confidence vote, the outcome of which was widely anticipated, ensures that the bill, best known for loosening restrictions on opening stores on Sundays, will advance. | The confidence vote, the outcome of which was widely anticipated, ensures that the bill, best known for loosening restrictions on opening stores on Sundays, will advance. |
| The vote on Thursday followed maneuvering by Prime Minister Manuel Valls on Tuesday to push the economic package through the National Assembly, the lower house of Parliament, by employing a rarely used constitutional tool to bypass Socialist rebels. Use of the tactic underlines the difficulties President François Hollande has faced within his own party to restructure the economy and try to stimulate job growth. | The vote on Thursday followed maneuvering by Prime Minister Manuel Valls on Tuesday to push the economic package through the National Assembly, the lower house of Parliament, by employing a rarely used constitutional tool to bypass Socialist rebels. Use of the tactic underlines the difficulties President François Hollande has faced within his own party to restructure the economy and try to stimulate job growth. |
| The call for a confidence vote was meant to send a message to the Hollande government. | The call for a confidence vote was meant to send a message to the Hollande government. |
| “The masks have fallen,” Christian Jacob, leader of the center-right Union for a Popular Movement party, or UMP, in the National Assembly, told Mr. Valls before the vote. “You are no longer in control, you are no longer steering.” | “The masks have fallen,” Christian Jacob, leader of the center-right Union for a Popular Movement party, or UMP, in the National Assembly, told Mr. Valls before the vote. “You are no longer in control, you are no longer steering.” |
| But while maverick Socialists who opposed the package have assailed the administration’s economic policies, many were unwilling to go so far as to topple their own government. The motion, which needed an absolute majority of 289 votes to pass, mustered only 234. | But while maverick Socialists who opposed the package have assailed the administration’s economic policies, many were unwilling to go so far as to topple their own government. The motion, which needed an absolute majority of 289 votes to pass, mustered only 234. |
| The economic package, put together by the economy minister, Emmanuel Macron, and named after him, aims to spur growth by loosening France’s restrictive work and licensing rules. It calls for opening up closed professions, including work as notaries, bailiffs, court clerks and auctioneers, and allowing long-haul bus lines to compete more directly with the French national rail service. France would also sell billions of dollars’ worth of state assets to reduce debt and to invest in the economy. | The economic package, put together by the economy minister, Emmanuel Macron, and named after him, aims to spur growth by loosening France’s restrictive work and licensing rules. It calls for opening up closed professions, including work as notaries, bailiffs, court clerks and auctioneers, and allowing long-haul bus lines to compete more directly with the French national rail service. France would also sell billions of dollars’ worth of state assets to reduce debt and to invest in the economy. |
| The provision that has jolted defenders of the current system involves enabling stores in major tourist areas to open on Sundays and stay open until midnight. Stores in other locations would be allowed to open as many as 12 Sundays a year, up from five, with the approval of the local authorities. | The provision that has jolted defenders of the current system involves enabling stores in major tourist areas to open on Sundays and stay open until midnight. Stores in other locations would be allowed to open as many as 12 Sundays a year, up from five, with the approval of the local authorities. |
| About two dozen rebels in the left wing of the Socialist Party argued that the measures were gifts to the business community and a departure from Mr. Hollande’s Socialist promises in the 2012 presidential elections. And so, when the package came up for a vote on Tuesday, it became increasingly clear that it might not pass. | About two dozen rebels in the left wing of the Socialist Party argued that the measures were gifts to the business community and a departure from Mr. Hollande’s Socialist promises in the 2012 presidential elections. And so, when the package came up for a vote on Tuesday, it became increasingly clear that it might not pass. |
| Unwilling to risk defeat, Mr. Valls invoked a constitutional provision that permits sending the bill directly to the upper house of Parliament without a ballot, but exposes the government to a confidence vote. Had it failed, it would have toppled the government and, in the process, killed the bill. The provision, however, can be used for just one bill per parliamentary session. | Unwilling to risk defeat, Mr. Valls invoked a constitutional provision that permits sending the bill directly to the upper house of Parliament without a ballot, but exposes the government to a confidence vote. Had it failed, it would have toppled the government and, in the process, killed the bill. The provision, however, can be used for just one bill per parliamentary session. |
| Opposition politicians seized on the party’s divisions. “When you don’t have the strength to convince your majority, you don’t have the strength to convince the French,” Nicolas Sarkozy, Mr. Hollande’s predecessor and the leader of the UMP, told Europe 1 radio on Thursday. “If they use this nuclear weapon for the teeny-tiny Macron law, how will they pass the important reforms?” | Opposition politicians seized on the party’s divisions. “When you don’t have the strength to convince your majority, you don’t have the strength to convince the French,” Nicolas Sarkozy, Mr. Hollande’s predecessor and the leader of the UMP, told Europe 1 radio on Thursday. “If they use this nuclear weapon for the teeny-tiny Macron law, how will they pass the important reforms?” |
| Speaking to the National Assembly on Thursday, Mr. Valls defended the bill and his maneuvers. | Speaking to the National Assembly on Thursday, Mr. Valls defended the bill and his maneuvers. |
| “Do not challenge the legitimacy of the president of the republic, of this majority, of this government,” he said. “My duty, and the duty of this government, was to ensure that this bill was passed.” | “Do not challenge the legitimacy of the president of the republic, of this majority, of this government,” he said. “My duty, and the duty of this government, was to ensure that this bill was passed.” |
| The bill will go before the Senate, France’s upper house of Parliament, in March. | The bill will go before the Senate, France’s upper house of Parliament, in March. |