Despite Emmanuel Macron's decision to vote against the EU-Mercosur agreement in Brussels, Jordan Bardella, president of the National Rally, announced on Thursday a motion of censure against Sébastien Lecornu's government. He describes the French position as a hypocritical and belated maneuver, denouncing a betrayal of farmers. This comes as the European Union prepares to sign the deal despite French opposition.
On Thursday, January 8, 2026, Emmanuel Macron announced that France would vote against the signing of the EU-Mercosur trade agreement at the European ministers' meeting in Brussels the following day. In a statement, the president acknowledged a 'unanimous political rejection' in France while recognizing 'incontestable advances' in the negotiations. 'France is in favor of international trade, but the EU-Mercosur agreement is an agreement from another age, negotiated for too long on bases that are too old,' he declared. He directly informed Ursula von der Leyen of this position during a phone call Thursday afternoon.
Despite this, France cannot prevent the agreement's signing. With the support of Giorgia Meloni's Italy, proponents of the deal hold a qualified majority in the EU Council. Von der Leyen plans to initial the agreement on Monday in Paraguay, as noted in multiple sources. Opponents, including France, Poland, Hungary, and Ireland, lack sufficient votes.
In response to this decision, Jordan Bardella, president of the National Rally (RN), reacted sharply on social network X. He deems Macron's maneuver 'as belated as it is hypocritical,' after years of negotiations without defending French interests. 'By claiming today to oppose it [...], he attempts a communication maneuver as belated as it is hypocritical,' he wrote, denouncing a 'betrayal of French farmers.' Bardella announced that the RN would file two motions of censure: one in the National Assembly against the Lecornu government, and one in the European Parliament against the von der Leyen Commission.
This episode highlights tensions surrounding Mercosur, seen as a threat to French agriculture due to its looser environmental and sanitary standards. French farmers, in anger, view the agreement as a risk to their food sovereignty, exacerbating the ongoing agricultural crisis in 2026.
