French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu Resigns After Less Than a Month in Power
The nation's PM Lecornu has stepped down, shortly after his cabinet was unveiled.
The presidential office issued a statement after the Prime Minister met President Emmanuel Macron for an 60-minute discussion on Monday morning.
This surprising decision comes only less than a month after he was appointed prime minister following the dissolution of the prior administration of his predecessor.
Political factions in the National Assembly had sharply condemned the makeup of his ministerial team, which was very close to the previous one, and threatened to vote it down.
Calls for New Vote and Political Instability
A number of factions are now demanding early elections, with some calling for Macron to also leave office - despite the fact that he has repeatedly stated he will not stand down before his term ends in 2027.
"The President needs to pick: calling new elections or stepping down," said Sébastien Chenu, one of leading figures of the far right National Rally (RN).
Lecornu - the ex-defense chief and a Macron loyalist - was the fifth French PM in less than 24 months.
Context of Government Turmoil
French politics has been highly unstable since last summer, when sudden national voting resulted in a no clear majority.
This has made it difficult for each PM to garner the necessary support to pass any bills.
The previous administration was rejected in last month after parliament voted against his austerity budget, which aimed to slash government spending by 44 billion euros.
Financial Challenges and Stock Response
The nation's budget gap stood at 5.8 percent of economic output in the current year and its government debt is 114% of GDP.
That is the third highest public debt in the eurozone after Greece and Italy, and equivalent to almost 50,000 euros per person.
Stocks fell sharply in the Paris exchange after the resignation report was released on Monday.
