The French PM Sébastien Lecornu Tenders Resignation Following Under a 30-Day Period in the Role
The French Premier Lecornu has resigned, under 24 hours after his ministers was presented.
The French presidency made the announcement after the Prime Minister met Macron for an meeting on the start of the week.
This surprising decision comes only under four weeks after Lecornu was appointed prime minister following the collapse of the previous government of his predecessor.
Parties across the board in the legislature had strongly opposed the composition of Lecornu's cabinet, which was largely unchanged to the previous one, and threatened to vote it down.
Pressure for New Vote and Political Unrest
A number of factions are now calling for a snap election, with others demanding the President to also leave office - although he has repeatedly stated he will not resign before his term ends in five years from now.
"Macron needs to choose: parliament's dissolution or stepping down," said Sébastien Chenu, one of leading figures of the RN party.
Lecornu - the previous military head and a ally of the President - was the fifth French PM in less than 24 months.
Background of Government Turmoil
France's political landscape has been highly unstable since mid-2024, when early legislative polls resulted in a hung parliament.
This has posed obstacles for every premier to secure enough backing to approve legislation.
Bayrou's government was rejected in autumn after parliament voted against his fiscal tightening package, which aimed to reduce public expenditure by €44bn.
Financial Pressures and Stock Response
The French shortfall reached 5.8 percent of economic output in 2024 and its government debt is 114% of GDP.
That is the third largest government debt in the euro area after Greece and Italy, and amounting to almost €50,000 per French citizen.
Stocks fell sharply in the Paris exchange after the announcement about the PM was released on Monday morning.
