Bayrou begins his speech by saying that some of his critics probably considered his decision to call the vote too risky.
But he says he believes the opposite and “the biggest risk would be to not take any risks, to let things carry on as they are, to play politics as usual.”
He says lawmakers will face “not a political question, but a historical question” that will shape the future of France.
Opening the block of parliamentary groups’ responses, Vallaud says today’s sitting is one the Socialists “neither desired, not organised,” as he launches a blistering attack on Bayrou and Macron, “a defeated president” who he holds responsible for the current situation.
“Do you like the truth? Here it is,” he says, as he blames Macron for “improverishing the poor, enriching the rich, and turning his back on the future.”
He says Bayrou’s decision to call the vote is not “a act of courage, but a cop-out” and an attempt to retreat from responsibility for the current crisis.
He says the policies of the government amounted not just to “a fatal error, but a moral failing.”
Ouch. Guess that’s a no then.
Bayrou ends after 43 minutes with a passionate defence of democracy, urging lawmakers to abandon “the curse of perpetual division.”
He calls for lawmakers to show their conscience instead, to face the reality, and choose the path of “shared truth and courage” together.
And that’s it.
We will now get responses from the key political groups, starting with Boris Vallaud, the head of the Socialist parliamentary group.
Acknowledging the dramatic situation of his government, Bayrou argues that his resignation wouldn’t change much, as he tells lawmakers “you have the power to overthrow the government, you do not have the power to erase reality.”
He says that if no action is taken, “spending will continue to increase even more,” with the “already unbearable debt burden … becoming heavier and heavier.”
He says he chooses to take his constitutional responsibility seriously in a last minute bid to win the parliament over, ignoring the political noise in the media, but appealing to their “personal conscience”.
Quoting de Gaulle, he says political logic naturally drives parties to oppose each other and challenge each other, and not to work together, but says that “no good” can come out of that.
Bayrou says the past decisions on debt “have broken the contract of trust” between generations, leaving the younger generations behind and frustrated with the state.
He talks about problems they face with finding work, housing, as he says it is “not sustainable” from a moral, civic, and democratic position.
Bayrou warns that the debt means that France works hoping to get richer, but “every year it gets poorer a little more,” as he says it cannot continue.
He compares himself to a captain of a ship that leaks as he says “our duty is first and foremost to make the ship watertight” as quickly as possible.
He says that some want to delay the costly decisions, but he insists “if we want to save the ship, the ship on which we are and our children are, we must act without delay.”
He then talks about the importance of strong France, as he adds that “submission to debt is like submission by military force,” and adds: “In both cases, we lose our freedom.”
Bayrou stresses the issue of budget deficit and insufficient spending controls is central to all these considerations.
He says that France has ran a budget deficit for 51 years, calling it out “a reflex, or worse, an addiction” of the French state to finance it’s expenses with more money it doesn’t have.
Bayrou says that France faces a number of urgent issues that require urgent answers, pointing to falling productivity, education, migration, and questions on how to keep the French social model alive as it faces growing deficit, demographic issues, the imbalance in the pension system, shortage of housing and increasingly severe environmental and security problems.
“The model needs to be reinvented,” he says.
Bayrou begins his speech by saying that some of his critics probably considered his decision to call the vote too risky.
But he says he believes the opposite and “the biggest risk would be to not take any risks, to let things carry on as they are, to play politics as usual.”
He says lawmakers will face “not a political question, but a historical question” that will shape the future of France.
The debate on the government’s motion is beginning right now.
I will bring you all the key updates here.
You can also watch it (in French) below.