France's Prime Minister Michel Barnier ponders during a session of questions to the government at the National Assembly in Paris, on December 3, 2024. Meanwhile, the German government is already on track for a snap election early next year, with its own no-confidence vote set to take place in the next few weeks. Even in the U.K., Prime Minister Kier Starmer and Finance Minister Rachel Reeves are under pressure just five months into the job, with disputes mainly centered around — you guessed it — the budget. watch nowIn the euro zone, post-pandemic fiscal rules are putting pressure on even the most hawkish EU members. However, now Germany, Austria and the Netherlands are also falling foul of the EU's deficit rules that nations need to keep a 3% deficit ratio and a 60% debt ratio relative to their GDP.

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Persons: Michel Barnier, Julien De Rosa, Kier Starmer, Rachel Reeves, Barnier's Organizations: France's, National Assembly, Afp, Getty, EU, European Commission Locations: Paris, France, Italy, Greece, Germany, Austria, Netherlands