France's Premier Lecornu Steps Down Following Under a Month in Power
The nation's PM Sébastien Lecornu has handed in his resignation, shortly after his cabinet was announced.
The Elysée palace issued a statement after the Prime Minister met President Emmanuel Macron for an meeting on Monday morning.
This surprising decision comes only under four weeks after he was named premier following the dissolution of the previous government of his predecessor.
Various groups in the National Assembly had sharply condemned the makeup of the new government, which was mostly similar to Bayrou's, and vowed to reject it.
Pressure for Snap Polls and Government Unrest
Multiple political groups are now calling for new parliamentary polls, with others calling for the President to resign too - despite the fact that he has always said he will not leave before his mandate concludes in five years from now.
"The President needs to decide: calling new elections or leaving office," said Chenu, one of prominent members of the RN party.
Lecornu - the former armed forces minister and a Macron loyalist - was the fifth premier in under two years.
Background of Government Crisis
The nation's governance has been markedly turbulent since mid-2024, when early legislative polls resulted in a deadlocked assembly.
This has created challenges for every premier to obtain required votes to pass any bills.
Bayrou's government was rejected in autumn after lawmakers declined to support his spending cuts plan, which aimed to reduce public expenditure by €44bn.
Economic Challenges and Stock Response
France's deficit reached 5.8 percent of economic output in the current year and its government debt is more than the total economic output.
That is the third largest government debt in the eurozone after Greece and Italy, and equal to almost 50k euros for each resident.
Stocks fell sharply in the French stock market after the resignation report broke on Monday morning.
