France's new prime minister takes office amid anti-government protests

Sebastien Lecornu, chosen by President Emmanuel Macron to be France's fifth prime minister in just two years, took office on Wednesday amid widespread anti-government protests that highlighted the country's deepening political crisis.

Lecornu, a conservative ally of Macron who most recently served as defence minister, arrived at the prime minister's residence at midday, where he met with former Prime Minister Francois Bayrou, who was removed from office on Monday following his plans to reduce France’s large deficit.

In his first address, Lecornu is expected to outline how he intends to work with a fragmented parliament, divided into three ideological blocs, to pass a reduced budget for the coming year. He faces a deadline of October 7 to present a draft of the 2026 budget to parliament, though there is a small extension until October 13 before lawmakers lose the chance to approve it by the end of the year.

Reactions to Lecornu’s appointment on Tuesday made clear the challenges ahead. While there is broad agreement on the need to reduce France’s deficit, which reached 5.8% of GDP in 2024, there is no consensus on how to achieve it.

The far-left has vowed to seek Lecornu’s removal with a no-confidence motion, while the far-right National Rally (RN) has expressed a willingness to collaborate on the budget, provided its demands are met. "His budget will be RN’s, or his government won’t survive," RN lawmaker Laure Lavalette wrote on X.

The RN, the largest parliamentary party in France, is crucial to any potential no-confidence vote. Lecornu, seen as the closest Macron ally to the RN, even dined with RN president Jordan Bardella last year.

In addition to his efforts to unite the political factions, Lecornu faces the challenge of passing a budget that balances the needs of both the Socialists, who want to soften cuts and tax the wealthy, and The Republicans, who staunchly oppose any tax hikes. Macron made an unusual move on Tuesday, calling Socialist leader Olivier Faure to inform him that a leftist would not be appointed as prime minister. Faure, while leaving the door open to cooperation, also warned that he would support a no-confidence motion if the government failed to consider Socialist priorities.

Meanwhile, protests erupted across France as part of the "Block Everything" movement, driven by discontent with Macron’s policies, proposed budget cuts, and the political establishment as a whole. Thousands of people took to the streets, clashing with security forces, disrupting traffic, and setting fire to rubbish bins. Authorities deployed around 80,000 police to manage the unrest.

"Anger has been building for months, even years," said Daniel Bretones, a union member protesting in Marseille. "We’ve had five prime ministers under Macron’s second term, but nothing has changed."

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