French Prime Minister Lecornu Tenders Resignation Following Less Than a Month in Power
France's Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has stepped down, under 24 hours after his government team was announced.
The Elysée palace confirmed the news after Lecornu met President Emmanuel Macron for an 60-minute discussion on the start of the week.
This unexpected development comes only under four weeks after Lecornu was appointed prime minister following the dissolution of the prior administration of François Bayrou.
Various groups in the French parliament had strongly opposed the structure of his ministerial team, which was very close to the previous one, and vowed to reject it.
Calls for New Vote and Government Unrest
Multiple political groups are now clamouring for early elections, with certain voices demanding the President to resign too - even though he has consistently affirmed he will not resign before his mandate concludes in five years from now.
"Macron needs to decide: parliament's dissolution or resignation," said Sébastien Chenu, one of leading figures of the National Rally.
Lecornu - the former armed forces minister and a ally of the President - was the fifth premier in under two years.
Background of Government Turmoil
French politics has been very volatile since mid-2024, when sudden national voting resulted in a no clear majority.
This has made it difficult for each PM to garner the necessary support to pass any bills.
Bayrou's government was defeated in September after the assembly refused to back his spending cuts plan, which aimed to slash government spending by 44 billion euros.
Economic Pressures and Market Response
The nation's budget gap hit nearly 6% of the economy in 2024 and its national debt is 114 percent of GDP.
That is the third largest government debt in the European monetary union after two southern European nations, and equivalent to almost €50,000 per French citizen.
Markets declined in the Paris bourse after the news of Lecornu's resignation emerged on Monday morning.
