OP-ED. The perilous decision to submit his government to a vote of confidence shows a lack of understanding of informal procedural rules by the prime minister, writes the political scientist Olivier Rozenberg.

If he loses the confidence vote, French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou's minority government will fall.

French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou will hold a high-stakes confidence vote in parliament on September 8 over unpopular plans to clean up France’s public finances.