French President Francois Hollande's Socialist Party has won enough seats in parliamentary elections to form an absolute majority, BBC reports.

With final results still to be declared, the Socialists look set to win between 313 and 315 of the 577 seats in the National Assembly.

But former President Nicolas Sarkozy's UMP has seen its share fall from 304 to an estimated 214 seats.
It gives the president strong backing for his tax-and-spend programme.

These results mean the Socialists will not have to rely on the support of the Greens or far left to push through their plans to hire more public workers and refocus EU fiscal efforts away from their emphasis on austerity.

"This score exemplifies strong confidence in the president," said Finance Minister Pierre Moscovici.
Sunday's vote was the second round of a two-part parliamentary election. Turnout was a record low, at 55.9%.