France's Premier Sébastien Lecornu Tenders Resignation Following Less Than a 30-Day Period in the Role
The nation's PM Sébastien Lecornu has handed in his resignation, less than a day after his ministers was presented.
The presidential office issued a statement after the Prime Minister met President Emmanuel Macron for an hour on Monday morning.
This unexpected development comes only less than a month after he was named premier following the dissolution of the previous government of François Bayrou.
Political factions in the French parliament had sharply condemned the structure of his ministerial team, which was largely unchanged to Bayrou's, and vowed to reject it.
Demands for New Vote and Government Unrest
Multiple political groups are now calling for new parliamentary polls, with others urging Macron to step down as well - despite the fact that he has consistently affirmed he will not leave before his mandate concludes in the year 2027.
"The President needs to decide: parliament's dissolution or resignation," said Sébastien Chenu, one of key representatives of the National Rally.
The outgoing PM - the ex-defense chief and a ally of the President - was the fifth French PM in a two-year span.
Context of Government Crisis
France's political landscape has been markedly turbulent since July 2024, when sudden national voting resulted in a hung parliament.
This has made it difficult for every premier to obtain required votes to approve legislation.
The previous administration was voted down in last month after parliament declined to support his austerity budget, which aimed to reduce public expenditure by $51 billion.
Economic Pressures and Market Reaction
The French shortfall stood at 5.8% of GDP in the current year and its government debt is 114% of GDP.
That is the number three debt level in the European monetary union after Italy and Greece, and equivalent to almost 50k euros for each resident.
Stocks fell sharply in the French stock market after the announcement about the PM broke on Monday morning.
