The French PM Lecornu Resigns After Under a 30-Day Period in Office
France's Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has handed in his resignation, less than a day after his government team was announced.
The French presidency confirmed the news after Lecornu met President Emmanuel Macron for an meeting on Monday morning.
This unexpected development comes only under four weeks after Lecornu was named premier following the downfall of the prior administration of François Bayrou.
Parties across the board in the French parliament had strongly opposed the composition of Lecornu's cabinet, which was largely unchanged to Bayrou's, and threatened to vote it down.
Pressure for Snap Polls and Political Unrest
A number of factions are now calling for early elections, with certain voices urging Macron to resign too - despite the fact that he has repeatedly stated he will not stand down before his term ends in five years from now.
"Macron needs to pick: calling new elections or stepping down," said Sébastien Chenu, one of prominent members of the RN party.
The outgoing PM - the ex-defense chief and a supporter of Macron - was the fifth premier in a two-year span.
Context of Government Crisis
France's political landscape has been highly unstable since mid-2024, when sudden national voting resulted in a no clear majority.
This has created challenges for every premier to secure enough backing to approve legislation.
Bayrou's government was rejected in September after the assembly voted against his austerity budget, which aimed to cut state costs by 44 billion euros.
Economic Challenges and Market Response
The French shortfall stood at 5.8% of GDP in the current year and its public debt is 114 percent of GDP.
That is the third highest public debt in the European monetary union after two southern European nations, and amounting to almost 50,000 euros per person.
Markets declined in the French stock market after the news of Lecornu's resignation was released on Monday.
