Summary Valls confidently declared last week that "the majority will be there" for the vote.
PARIS (AFP) - French Prime Minister Manuel Valls will hold a parliamentary vote of confidence on September 16, the presidency said Wednesday, as the ruling Socialist party suffers a crisis that mirrors that of the entire country.
Manuel Valls had already announced his intention to hold the vote last week, shortly after tendering the government s resignation when his firebrand, left-wing economy minister publicly challenged the country s economic direction. Valls replaced him with a former banker in the quick reshuffle that ensued.
The move angered the left flank of a deeply divided party that is going through a crisis that reflects that of France as a whole, weighed down by stagnant growth, record-high unemployment and a deeply unpopular leader.
On Wednesday, the presidency said that the cabinet had authorised the prime minister to deliver a "general policy statement" -- or work programme -- to parliament on September 16, which will be followed by a confidence vote.
Valls confidently declared last week that "the majority will be there" for the vote.
But the work programme contains a policy called the Responsibility Pact that offers tax breaks to businesses in exchange for jobs, funded by big public spending cuts, which is deeply unpopular with rebel left-wing Socialist lawmakers.
Observers believe it is unlikely these rebels will choose to vote against Valls. If the prime minister does not get a majority, however, a dramatic dissolution of parliament would be inevitable, plunging France further into crisis.
