🔗 Share this article French Prime Minister Lecornu Tenders Resignation Following Less Than a Month in the Role The nation's PM Lecornu has resigned, under 24 hours after his government team was unveiled. The presidential office issued a statement after Lecornu met the French President for an hour on the start of the week. This unexpected development comes only 26 days after he was named premier following the dissolution of the previous government of François Bayrou. Various groups in the legislature had fiercely criticised the structure of the new government, which was mostly similar to the previous one, and threatened to vote it down. Calls for New Vote and Political Unrest A number of factions are now demanding early elections, with some calling for the President to resign too - although he has repeatedly stated he will not stand down before his mandate concludes in the year 2027. "The President needs to pick: dissolution of parliament or stepping down," said Chenu, one of key representatives of the far right National Rally (RN). Lecornu - the ex-defense chief and a Macron loyalist - was the fifth premier in under two years. Context of Government Crisis The nation's governance has been highly unstable since last summer, when sudden national voting resulted in a no clear majority. This has made it difficult for any prime minister to secure enough backing to approve legislation. The former cabinet was voted down in autumn after lawmakers declined to support his spending cuts plan, which aimed to reduce public expenditure by $51 billion. Financial Pressures and Market Reaction France's deficit stood at nearly 6% of the economy in 2024 and its national debt is 114 percent of GDP. That is the number three debt level in the euro area after two southern European nations, and equal to almost €50,000 per French citizen. Stocks fell sharply in the Paris bourse after the news of Lecornu's resignation broke on Monday morning.