French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu on Friday ruled out using special constitutional powers to push the budget through parliament without a vote, placing the responsibility on lawmakers to reach a compromise.

The announcement came ahead of crucial talks with opposition leaders, including the far-right National Rally and the Socialist Party, over a scaled-down 2026 budget — a process that could expose his government to a no-confidence vote, Reuters reported.

Lecornu, who became President Emmanuel Macron’s fifth prime minister in just two years last month, has been holding intensive consultations with party leaders and trade unions in an effort to secure support in a parliament deeply split among three ideological blocs.