France's Premier Sébastien Lecornu Resigns After Less Than a 30-Day Period in Power
The French Premier Lecornu has resigned, under 24 hours after his ministers was announced.
The French presidency made the announcement after the Prime Minister met President Emmanuel Macron for an hour on the start of the week.
This unexpected development comes only 26 days after he was appointed prime minister following the dissolution of the prior administration of his predecessor.
Parties across the board in the National Assembly had strongly opposed the composition of his ministerial team, which was largely unchanged to the previous one, and threatened to vote it down.
Pressure for Snap Polls and Political Unrest
Several parties are now calling for new parliamentary polls, with others demanding Macron to step down as well - despite the fact that he has repeatedly stated he will not stand down before his term ends in the year 2027.
"Macron needs to decide: calling new elections or stepping down," said Sébastien Chenu, one of leading figures of the RN party.
Lecornu - the former armed forces minister and a ally of the President - was the fifth French PM in less than 24 months.
Context of Government Crisis
French politics has been highly unstable since mid-2024, when early legislative polls resulted in a hung parliament.
This has created challenges for any prime minister to garner the necessary support to pass any bills.
Bayrou's government was rejected in last month after parliament declined to support his fiscal tightening package, which aimed to cut state costs by €44bn.
Financial Challenges and Market Reaction
The nation's budget gap reached nearly 6% of the economy in the current year and its national debt is 114% of GDP.
That is the third highest public debt in the euro area after Greece and Italy, and equivalent to almost €50,000 per French citizen.
Markets declined in the French stock market after the announcement about the PM broke on the start of the week.
