France's Premier Sébastien Lecornu Tenders Resignation After Less Than a 30-Day Period in Office

France's Prime Minister Lecornu has handed in his resignation, less than a day after his ministers was announced.

The presidential office issued a statement after the Prime Minister met President Emmanuel Macron for an 60-minute discussion on the start of the week.

This surprising decision comes only 26 days after he was named premier following the dissolution of the previous government of François Bayrou.

Parties across the board in the legislature had fiercely criticised the makeup of his ministerial team, which was mostly similar to the previous one, and promised to block its approval.

Demands for Snap Polls and Government Instability

Several parties are now demanding early elections, with some urging the President to step down as well - despite the fact that he has consistently affirmed he will not resign before his term ends in the year 2027.

"Macron needs to pick: dissolution of parliament or resignation," said Chenu, one of leading figures of the far right National Rally (RN).

Lecornu - the ex-defense chief and a ally of the President - was the fifth French PM in under two years.

Context of Government Crisis

France's political landscape has been very volatile since July 2024, when snap parliamentary elections resulted in a deadlocked assembly.

This has posed obstacles for any prime minister to secure enough backing to enact new laws.

Bayrou's government was defeated in last month after lawmakers voted against his fiscal tightening package, which aimed to slash government spending by $51 billion.

Financial Challenges and Market Response

The nation's budget gap reached nearly 6% of the economy in 2024 and its national debt is 114% of GDP.

That is the third highest public debt in the euro area after Greece and Italy, and equivalent to almost 50k euros for each resident.

Markets declined in the French stock market after the announcement about the PM emerged on the start of the week.