France is hurting towards a financial and political crisis that could bring down Emmanuel Macron's presidency, after his prime minister warned the country faces a Liz Truss-style 'catastrophe' if his austerity budget is rejected.
Francois Bayrou admitted the odds were 'at first sight' stacked against him ahead of a September 8 confidence vote, as opposition parties unite against his plan to slash the deficit by £38billion.
He warned that France was now like 'a boat that is holed and taking water' and told voters that rejecting his austerity budget would plunge the country into financial meltdown, driving up borrowing costs and leaving France unable to find lenders for its £2.85trillion debt pile.
France is staring down 'two catastrophes', Bayrou warned – soaring interest rates and the risk of markets turning their backs on the country's major debt.
Citing Liz Truss's disastrous six-week premiership, he said: 'The difficulty that the English encountered two or three years ago and which is when you can't find lenders.
