France's Premier Lecornu Resigns Following Under a Month in the Role

France's Prime Minister Lecornu has handed in his resignation, under 24 hours after his ministers was presented.

The French presidency made the announcement after the Prime Minister met President Emmanuel Macron for an 60-minute discussion on the start of the week.

This unexpected development comes only 26 days after Lecornu was named premier following the dissolution of the previous government of François Bayrou.

Various groups in the National Assembly had fiercely criticised the structure of his ministerial team, which was very close to the previous one, and threatened to vote it down.

Demands for Early Elections and Political Instability

A number of factions are now clamouring for a snap election, with others demanding the President to step down as well - although he has always said he will not resign before his mandate concludes in the year 2027.

"Macron needs to pick: calling new elections or resignation," said Chenu, one of prominent members of the far right National Rally (RN).

The outgoing PM - the former armed forces minister and a Macron loyalist - was France's fifth prime minister in a two-year span.

Context of Government Turmoil

The nation's governance has been very volatile since mid-2024, when sudden national voting resulted in a deadlocked assembly.

This has posed obstacles for each PM to garner the necessary support to pass any bills.

Bayrou's government was defeated in last month after the assembly refused to back his spending cuts plan, which aimed to slash government spending by $51 billion.

Financial Challenges and Stock Reaction

The French shortfall reached 5.8% of GDP in 2024 and its government debt is 114 percent of GDP.

That is the number three debt level in the European monetary union after Italy and Greece, and amounting to almost €50,000 per French citizen.

Markets declined in the Paris bourse after the resignation report broke on the start of the week.