France's Premier Lecornu Resigns After Less Than a Month in Office
The French Premier Sébastien Lecornu has stepped down, shortly after his cabinet was announced.
The French presidency issued a statement after the Prime Minister met Macron for an 60-minute discussion on Monday morning.
This surprising decision comes only less than a month after Lecornu was appointed prime minister following the collapse of the previous government of his predecessor.
Parties across the board in the legislature had fiercely criticised the makeup of his ministerial team, which was very close to the previous one, and threatened to vote it down.
Demands for New Vote and Government Unrest
A number of factions are now demanding early elections, with some demanding the President to also leave office - despite the fact that he has consistently affirmed he will not stand down before his mandate concludes in the year 2027.
"Macron needs to pick: parliament's dissolution or resignation," said Sébastien Chenu, one of leading figures of the RN party.
The outgoing PM - the former armed forces minister and a ally of the President - was France's fifth prime minister in under two years.
Background of Political Crisis
The nation's governance has been highly unstable since mid-2024, when snap parliamentary elections resulted in a deadlocked assembly.
This has made it difficult for every premier to obtain required votes to approve legislation.
The previous administration was defeated in last month after lawmakers refused to back his austerity budget, which aimed to reduce public expenditure by €44bn.
Financial Pressures and Stock Reaction
The nation's budget gap hit nearly 6% of the economy in 2024 and its national debt is 114% of GDP.
That is the number three debt level in the euro area after Greece and Italy, and equivalent to almost 50,000 euros per person.
Stocks fell sharply in the Paris bourse after the news of Lecornu's resignation emerged on the start of the week.
