The French government is prepared to “make concessions” to get its budget though parliament and avoid a market “storm”, the finance minister said on Thursday, in a standoff that risks bringing down Michel Barnier,

The future for French Prime Minister Michel Barnier's government looks bleak, with his struggles to push the 2025 budget through a polarised parliament increasingly likely to end in the toppling of his fragile coalition.

A bitter debate is now unfolding inside the ruling class over how to recalibrate its policies, that will confront it, sooner rather than later, with explosive working class opposition.