France's Premier Sébastien Lecornu Steps Down After Under a 30-Day Period in Office
The French Premier Lecornu has handed in his resignation, under 24 hours after his ministers was announced.
The Elysée palace confirmed the news after Lecornu met Macron for an hour on the start of the week.
This unexpected development comes only 26 days after Lecornu was named premier following the downfall of the prior administration of his predecessor.
Various groups in the National Assembly had fiercely criticised the composition of the new government, which was mostly similar to the previous one, and vowed to reject it.
Calls for New Vote and Political Unrest
Several parties are now demanding a snap election, with some calling for the President to also leave office - although he has consistently affirmed he will not leave before his time in office finishes in five years from now.
"Macron needs to decide: dissolution of parliament or resignation," said Chenu, one of key representatives of the far right National Rally (RN).
Lecornu - the ex-defense chief and a Macron loyalist - was the fifth premier in a two-year span.
Background of Government Crisis
French politics has been highly unstable since July 2024, when snap parliamentary elections resulted in a no clear majority.
This has made it difficult for any prime minister to obtain required votes to pass any bills.
Bayrou's government was voted down in autumn after the assembly declined to support his fiscal tightening package, which aimed to cut state costs by $51 billion.
Economic Pressures and Stock Response
The nation's budget gap stood at 5.8% of GDP in the current year and its public debt is more than the total economic output.
That is the number three debt level in the euro area after two southern European nations, 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.
