The European Parliament’s Patriots for Europe group is to table another confidence vote against Ursula von der Leyen and her European Commission.
French group leader Jordan Bardella said yesterday evening he would again seek to bring down the von der Leyen Commission over the way she was “forcing through” the Mercosur trade agreement.
This would be the fourth motion of censure brought against von der Leyen since she took office as European Commission president.
A majority of EU member states approved the agreement today, clearing the way for the Commission to sign the deal and triggering political backlash from other political groups too. The Parliament’s Left group said it would challenge the deal in the European Court of Justice.
Von der Leyen is expected to travel to Paraguay next week to sign the agreement on the EU’s behalf, despite continuing opposition from several national parliaments and governments.
Member States in December failed to reach agreement on the deal and withheld authorisation. Italy joined France as key country blocking an agreement. Rome has since shifted its position, allowing a majority to form.
Bardella also announced a separate motion of censure targeting French President Emmanuel Macron, despite his announcement that France would vote agains the deal. French farm groups oppose it in part over the government’s handling of a bovine disease outbreak. They continue to fear the deal could still go ahead despite Paris’ opposition.
France has long argued that the agreement would expose the EU market to large volumes of cheaper beef, poultry and sugar produced under looser environmental and animal-welfare standards. Farmers say this would undercut producers already struggling with rising costs, falling margins and stricter EU rules.
National Rally called the President’s position a “late and hypocritical communication manoeuvre”.
“The National Rally will therefore table two motions of censure: one in the National Assembly against the government, and one in the European Parliament against the von der Leyen Commission,” Bardella, who leads the Patriots for Europe group in the European Parliament, composed of 85 members, wrote on X.
“While we are realistic about the parliamentary arithmetic, the aim is to scrutinise the credibility of the Commission President,” Danish MEP Anders Vistisen, the Patriots group coordinator, told Brussels Signal. Prior attempts to bring down the Von der Leyen Commission have all fallen short of the required majority. The Patriots grouping already attempted to oust the Commission last October with a similar motion linked to Mercosur.
According to Vistisen, the new motion is intended to test political support for von der Leyen beyond the trade deal itself.
“The initiative is intended to test the resilience of the majority backing Ursula von der Leyen, particularly in light of mounting criticism over failed foreign policy decisions, shortcomings in migration management, and the political implications of her proximity to Macron’s entourage,” he said.
“Macron did nothing to prevent this”, Manon Aubry, co-president of The Left, wrote on X right after the vote.
They declined commenting on supporting the Patriots’ motion, or tabling another one, as they did in October, when both motions failed.
Vistisen expects to the same parties to support the Patriots’ motion as in October.
“I expect The Left to be struggling to explain why they don’t [support our motion]”, he said.
MEPs from ECR and the Greens said no decision had been taken yet by their group.
Opposition to the Mercosur agreement is not confined to Europe. In South America, the deal also remains controversial.
Greenpeace EU campaigner Lis Cunha said von der Leyen’s decision to sign the agreement risked presenting it as settled when key hurdles remained.
“Ursula von der Leyen will sign the agreement with Mercosur next week and act like this is a done deal when it’s anything but,” she said. “MEPs still have to have their say on the overall agreement.”
She warned that the agreement faced strong resistance despite the Commission’s confidence.
“The simple truth is that this unpopular deal is a disaster for the Amazon rainforest and no progressive MEP committed to forest protection should ever support it,” Cunha said.
