Fiddling in Paris Nobody has gained any credit from the
present French )olitical crisis—if that is the right term to apply to a situation ,vhich inspires mainly boredom in France and bewilderment lsewhere. The suspicion still persists that M. Pinay, whose :conomic policy has kept France on an even keel for ten months and whose stiff Budget proposals were the only ones suitable to the case, might still be able, if he tried really hard, to get the country through the next few months. The Gaullists and the M.R.P., who both contributed to M. Pinay's downfall, have not shown during the past ten days of negotiations that they have any real alternative to the Budget which he proposed. The urge, which now makes a regular annual appearance, to try to forget economic reality by indulging in a political New Year holiday, may possibly give some satisfaction to those who have always argued that the antics of the politicians are of no importance since the work of governing France goes on just the same without them. But it can give no pleasure at all to those who believe that it is bad for Europe and the world in general that the Parliament of France should be brought into contempt. In any case there is some doubt at this moment whether the French Treasury will be able to meet its commitments in the next few months, and the prospect of a sharp fall in the franc at a time when the country has no Government and no Budget is alarming. It is hardly surprising that once again the more drastic of the possible ways of pre- venting a recurrence of this situation are being talked of. The Gaullist argument that the present constitution will never work and ought to be amended is as difficult to refute as ever.. The suggestion has been made—it is said by M. Pleven—that the weapon of dissolution should be made more readily available, to influence deputies who appear to be much more disturbed about the prospect of fighting an election than they are at the possibility of economic collapse. But it is still doubtful whether any sensible solution is likely to be adopted so long as the possibility remains of scraping by in the old way.
Previous page
