PARIS — (AP) — In his inaugural address to parliament, the new French Prime Minister Michel Barnier warned Tuesday that “colossal” and spiraling debts are a “sword of Damocles” hanging over the finances of the European Union’s second-largest economy and announced belt-tightening and more taxes to reverse the trend.
Tuesday’s opening of parliament and Barnier’s address kicked off what promised to be months of tumult in the National Assembly — which is sharply divided from surprise elections three months ago that produced no clear winner.
Barnier’s speech laying out his policy intentions represented a crucial early test for his new minority government, which has no clear majority in the parliament. The mood in the chamber was closely watched for signs of how difficult opposition lawmakers intend to make it for the 73-year-old veteran conservative and EU Brexit negotiator to get things done and keep power. From the outset of his …