France's Premier Sébastien Lecornu Resigns After Under a Month in the Role
France's Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has stepped down, less than a day after his cabinet was unveiled.
The Elysée palace confirmed the news after Lecornu met the French President for an hour on Monday morning.
This shock move comes only less than a month after he was appointed prime minister following the dissolution of the previous government of his predecessor.
Parties across the board in the legislature had fiercely criticised the structure of Lecornu's cabinet, which was largely unchanged to Bayrou's, and vowed to reject it.
Pressure for New Vote and Government Instability
Multiple political groups are now demanding a snap election, with others demanding the President to resign too - although he has repeatedly stated he will not leave before his mandate concludes in the year 2027.
"The President needs to pick: parliament's dissolution or stepping down," said Sébastien Chenu, one of leading figures 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 Political Crisis
France's political landscape has been markedly turbulent since mid-2024, when snap parliamentary elections resulted in a hung parliament.
This has made it difficult for each PM to obtain required votes to approve legislation.
The previous administration was rejected in last month after parliament declined to support his spending cuts plan, which aimed to cut state costs by €44bn.
Financial Pressures and Stock Reaction
The French shortfall reached 5.8% of GDP in the current year and its government debt is 114% of GDP.
That is the third highest public debt in the European monetary union after Italy and Greece, and equivalent to almost 50,000 euros per person.
Share prices dropped in the French stock market after the announcement about the PM emerged on the start of the week.
