French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu Steps Down After Under a Month in Office
The French Premier Sébastien Lecornu has stepped down, less than a day after his government team was presented.
The Elysée palace confirmed the news after Lecornu met President Emmanuel Macron for an hour on Monday morning.
This surprising decision comes only under four weeks after he was named premier following the dissolution of the prior administration of François Bayrou.
Various groups in the National Assembly had strongly opposed the structure of his ministerial team, which was very close to the previous one, and threatened to vote it down.
Demands for Early Elections and Government Instability
A number of factions are now demanding early elections, with others calling for Macron to resign too - despite the fact that he has consistently affirmed he will not stand down before his term ends in 2027.
"Macron needs to choose: calling new elections or stepping down," said Chenu, one of prominent members of the RN party.
Lecornu - the former armed forces minister and a supporter of Macron - was the fifth premier in under two years.
Context of Government Turmoil
The nation's governance has been highly unstable since mid-2024, when sudden national voting resulted in a no clear majority.
This has made it difficult for every premier to secure enough backing to approve legislation.
The former cabinet was defeated in last month after parliament declined to support his austerity budget, which aimed to slash government spending by €44bn.
Financial Challenges and Market Response
The nation's budget gap reached 5.8% of GDP in the current year and its public debt is 114% of GDP.
That is the third largest government debt in the European monetary union after Greece and Italy, and equivalent to almost €50,000 per French citizen.
Markets declined in the Paris exchange after the resignation report broke on Monday morning.
