French Prime Minister Lecornu Steps Down After Less Than a Month in Office
France's Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has stepped down, less than a day after his ministers was presented.
The French presidency confirmed the news after Lecornu met the French President for an meeting on the start of the week.
This shock move comes only 26 days after Lecornu was appointed prime minister following the collapse of the prior administration of François Bayrou.
Various groups in the National Assembly had sharply condemned the composition of his ministerial team, which was largely unchanged to the previous one, and promised to block its approval.
Pressure for Snap Polls and Political Instability
Multiple political groups are now demanding new parliamentary polls, with some calling for the President to step down as well - despite the fact that he has repeatedly stated he will not resign before his time in office finishes in 2027.
"Macron needs to pick: dissolution of parliament or resignation," said Chenu, one of leading figures of the far right National Rally (RN).
Lecornu - the ex-defense chief and a Macron loyalist - was the fifth French PM in under two years.
Background of Government Crisis
French politics has been very volatile since July 2024, when sudden national voting resulted in a hung parliament.
This has posed obstacles for each PM to obtain required votes to approve legislation.
The previous administration was voted down in September after the assembly declined to support his spending cuts plan, which aimed to slash government spending by 44 billion euros.
Economic Pressures and Stock Reaction
France's deficit hit 5.8% of GDP in 2024 and its national debt is 114% of GDP.
That is the third largest government debt in the eurozone after Italy and Greece, and equal to almost 50k euros for each resident.
Share prices dropped in the French stock market after the announcement about the PM broke on Monday.
