French PM rules out using special constitutional powers to pass budget

PARIS (Reuters) -French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu on Friday ruled out using the 49.3 constitutional clause – one which allows a government to pass measures without winning a parliamentary vote – and said lawmakers will have to find a compromise to pass a budget.

“I have decided to stop using article 49.3 of the Constitution,” Lecornu told reporters. “In a functioning parliament — one that’s been recently renewed and reflects the face of France — you can’t just force things through,” he said.

(Reporting by Makini Brice, Inti Landauro and Richard Lough; editing by Michel RoseEditing by Sudip Kar-Gupta)