France's Premier Lecornu Tenders Resignation Following Less Than a Month in Office
The nation's PM Lecornu has handed in his resignation, under 24 hours after his ministers was presented.
The French presidency confirmed the news after Lecornu met the French President for an 60-minute discussion on Monday morning.
This surprising decision comes only under four weeks after Lecornu was given the PM role following the collapse of the previous government of his predecessor.
Various groups in the French parliament had strongly opposed the makeup of his ministerial team, which was very close to the previous one, and threatened to vote it down.
Pressure for Early Elections and Government Unrest
Several parties are now clamouring for early elections, with certain voices demanding the President to also leave office - despite the fact that he has consistently affirmed he will not leave before his term ends in 2027.
"Macron needs to choose: calling new elections or resignation," said Sébastien Chenu, one of prominent members of the National Rally.
The outgoing PM - the ex-defense chief and a supporter of Macron - was the fifth premier in under two years.
Context of Government Turmoil
The nation's governance has been very volatile since last summer, when snap parliamentary elections resulted in a hung parliament.
This has created challenges for any prime minister to secure enough backing to pass any bills.
The previous administration was defeated in September after lawmakers refused to back his austerity budget, which aimed to reduce public expenditure by €44bn.
Financial Challenges and Market Response
France's deficit stood at 5.8% of GDP in the current year and its public debt is 114 percent of GDP.
That is the number three debt level in the eurozone after Italy and Greece, and equivalent to almost €50,000 per French citizen.
Stocks fell sharply in the Paris bourse after the announcement about the PM broke on the start of the week.
