France's Premier Sébastien Lecornu Tenders Resignation Following Less Than a Month in Office

The nation's PM Lecornu has handed in his resignation, shortly after his government team was unveiled.

The French presidency confirmed the news after the Prime Minister met Macron for an hour on Monday morning.

This surprising decision comes only under four weeks after Lecornu was appointed prime minister following the collapse of the previous government of his predecessor.

Various groups in the National Assembly had sharply condemned the structure of his ministerial team, which was very close to the previous one, and promised to block its approval.

Calls for Snap Polls and Political Instability

A number of factions are now demanding early elections, with certain voices urging the President to step down as well - even though he has always said he will not leave before his term ends in 2027.

"The President needs to choose: dissolution of parliament or resignation," said Sébastien Chenu, one of key representatives of the National Rally.

The outgoing PM - the former armed forces minister and a supporter of Macron - was the fifth French PM in a two-year span.

Context of Government Crisis

French politics has been very volatile since mid-2024, when early legislative polls resulted in a deadlocked assembly.

This has made it difficult for any prime minister to secure enough backing to pass any bills.

The previous administration was defeated in September after lawmakers declined to support his spending cuts plan, which aimed to cut state costs by $51 billion.

Financial Pressures and Stock Reaction

The French shortfall hit 5.8% of GDP in the current year and its public debt is more than the total economic output.

That is the number three debt level in the European monetary union after Greece and Italy, and amounting to almost 50k euros for each resident.

Share prices dropped in the French stock market after the resignation report was released on the start of the week.