France's Premier Sébastien Lecornu Tenders Resignation Following Under a Month in Office
The French Premier Lecornu has stepped down, under 24 hours after his cabinet was announced.
The French presidency issued a statement after Lecornu met Macron for an 60-minute discussion 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.
Various groups in the legislature had sharply condemned the makeup of his ministerial team, which was very close to Bayrou's, and promised to block its approval.
Demands for Early Elections and Political Unrest
A number of factions are now calling for a snap election, with certain voices calling for the President to step down as well - despite the fact that he has consistently affirmed he will not resign before his mandate concludes in the year 2027.
"The President needs to pick: dissolution of parliament or leaving office," said Chenu, one of prominent members of the RN party.
Lecornu - the previous military head and a supporter of Macron - was France's fifth prime minister in a two-year span.
Context of Government Turmoil
France's political landscape has been very volatile since mid-2024, when sudden national voting resulted in a deadlocked assembly.
This has made it difficult for any prime minister to garner the necessary support to pass any bills.
Bayrou's government was rejected in September after the assembly declined to support his fiscal tightening package, which aimed to reduce public expenditure by €44bn.
Economic Pressures and Market Reaction
France's deficit reached nearly 6% of the economy in the current year and its public debt is 114% of GDP.
That is the number three debt level in the eurozone after Greece and Italy, and amounting to almost 50k euros for each resident.
Stocks fell sharply in the Paris exchange after the announcement about the PM broke on the start of the week.
