The French PM Lecornu Tenders Resignation After Under a Month in Power
The nation's PM Sébastien Lecornu has handed in his resignation, shortly after his government team was presented.
The Elysée palace made the announcement after the Prime Minister met Macron for an 60-minute discussion on Monday morning.
This shock move comes only under four weeks after Lecornu was appointed prime minister following the dissolution of the prior administration of his predecessor.
Political factions in the National Assembly had strongly opposed the structure of the new government, which was largely unchanged to the previous one, and promised to block its approval.
Demands for Early Elections and Political Instability
Multiple political groups are now calling for a snap election, with others demanding the President to step down as well - even though he has consistently affirmed he will not stand down before his time in office finishes in 2027.
"The President needs to pick: calling new elections or stepping down," said Sébastien Chenu, one of prominent members of the National Rally.
Lecornu - the previous military head and a Macron loyalist - was France's fifth prime minister in a two-year span.
Context of Government Crisis
The nation's governance has been markedly turbulent since July 2024, when early legislative polls resulted in a no clear majority.
This has made it difficult for each PM to obtain required votes to pass any bills.
The former cabinet was voted down in last month after lawmakers refused to back his austerity budget, which aimed to reduce public expenditure by $51 billion.
Economic Challenges and Stock Response
France's deficit stood at 5.8 percent of economic output in 2024 and its national debt is more than the total economic output.
That is the third highest public debt in the European monetary union after Italy and Greece, and equal to almost 50,000 euros per person.
Share prices dropped in the Paris bourse after the resignation report emerged on the start of the week.
