French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu Resigns Following Under a Month in Office
France's Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has handed in his resignation, shortly after his ministers was unveiled.
The French presidency issued a statement after the Prime Minister met the French President for an hour on Monday morning.
This surprising decision comes only less than a month after he was named premier following the dissolution of the previous government of François Bayrou.
Parties across the board in the French parliament had fiercely criticised the structure of his ministerial team, which was largely unchanged to Bayrou's, and vowed to reject it.
Pressure for Early Elections and Political Instability
Several parties are now demanding new parliamentary polls, with others demanding the President to resign too - even though he has consistently affirmed he will not leave before his mandate concludes in the year 2027.
"The President needs to pick: dissolution of parliament or stepping down," said Chenu, one of leading figures of the RN party.
The outgoing PM - the former armed forces minister and a supporter of Macron - was the fifth premier in less than 24 months.
Background of Government Crisis
The nation's governance has been markedly turbulent since last summer, when early legislative polls resulted in a hung parliament.
This has made it difficult for every premier to obtain required votes to enact new laws.
Bayrou's government was defeated in autumn after the assembly declined to support his fiscal tightening package, which aimed to cut state costs by $51 billion.
Financial Challenges and Stock Response
The French shortfall stood at 5.8% of GDP in the current year and its government debt is more than the total economic output.
That is the third highest public debt in the European monetary union after two southern European nations, and equal to almost €50,000 per French citizen.
Markets declined in the Paris bourse after the announcement about the PM was released on Monday morning.