French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu Tenders Resignation Following Under a Month in Power

The nation's PM Sébastien Lecornu has stepped down, shortly after his ministers was presented.

The French presidency confirmed the news after the Prime Minister met the French President for an 60-minute discussion on the start of the week.

This shock move comes only less than a month after he was appointed prime minister following the collapse of the prior administration of François Bayrou.

Political factions in the National Assembly had fiercely criticised the structure of his ministerial team, which was very close to Bayrou's, and threatened to vote it down.

Pressure for New Vote and Government Unrest

A number of factions are now calling for a snap election, with certain voices calling for the President to resign too - even though he has repeatedly stated he will not leave before his time in office finishes in five years from now.

"The President needs to choose: dissolution of parliament or leaving office," said Chenu, one of leading figures of the National Rally.

Lecornu - the previous military head and a supporter of Macron - was the fifth French PM in a two-year span.

Background of Government Crisis

French politics has been highly unstable since last summer, when sudden national voting resulted in a no clear majority.

This has created challenges for every premier to garner the necessary support to enact new laws.

The former cabinet was defeated in September after parliament refused to back his fiscal tightening package, which aimed to reduce public expenditure by 44 billion euros.

Economic Challenges and Stock Reaction

France's deficit stood at 5.8 percent of economic output in 2024 and its public debt is 114 percent of GDP.

That is the third largest government debt in the European monetary union after Greece and Italy, and equivalent to almost €50,000 per French citizen.

Stocks fell sharply in the French stock market after the announcement about the PM emerged on Monday.