France's Premier Lecornu Steps Down Following Less Than a Month in the Role
The French Premier Lecornu has resigned, less than a day after his cabinet was unveiled.
The Elysée palace confirmed the news after the Prime Minister met Macron for an meeting on Monday morning.
This shock move comes only under four weeks after Lecornu was given the PM role following the collapse of the previous government of François Bayrou.
Various groups in the legislature had strongly opposed the makeup of his ministerial team, which was mostly similar to the previous one, and threatened to vote it down.
Demands for New Vote and Government Unrest
Multiple political groups are now calling for a snap election, with some calling for the President to resign too - even though he has consistently affirmed he will not resign before his time in office finishes in the year 2027.
"The President needs to decide: parliament's dissolution or stepping down," said Chenu, one of key representatives of the RN party.
The outgoing PM - the ex-defense chief and a ally of the President - was France's fifth prime minister in under two years.
Background of Government Crisis
The nation's governance has been markedly turbulent since July 2024, when sudden national voting resulted in a no clear majority.
This has made it difficult for any prime minister to garner the necessary support to pass any bills.
The former cabinet was rejected in last month after lawmakers voted against his spending cuts plan, which aimed to slash government spending by $51 billion.
Economic Pressures and Market Reaction
France's deficit stood at nearly 6% of the economy in the current year and its public debt is 114 percent of GDP.
That is the third highest public debt in the eurozone after two southern European nations, and equal to almost 50k euros for each resident.
Stocks fell sharply in the French stock market after the resignation report was released on the start of the week.
