PARIS – French President Emmanuel Macron has named his defense minister and close ally Sebastien Lecornu as the new prime minister to resolve a deepening political crisis as protests loom in the coming days.
In choosing Lecornu, 39, to replace Francois Bayrou as the seventh premier of his mandate, Macron has plumped for one of his closest allies rather than seeking to broaden the appeal of the government across the political spectrum.
Macron has told Lecornu “to consult the political forces represented in parliament with a view to adopting a budget for the nation and making the agreements essential for the decisions of the coming months”, the president’s office announced.
In response, Lecornu thanked Macron for his trust, and hailed Bayrou “for the courage he showed in defending his convictions to the very end.”
“The President of the Republic has entrusted me with the task of building a government with a clear direction: the defence of our independence and power, the service of the French people, and political and institutional stability for the unity of the country,” the incoming premier said.
Bayrou, who survived just nine months in office, submitted his resignation to Macron earlier on Tuesday after France’s parliament ousted the government in a confidence vote.
The formal handover of power between Bayrou and Lecornu is due to take place on Wednesday at midday.
The French president has in the past been notoriously slow in casting a new prime minister. But this time he has taken less than a day given the risk of financial and political instability.
“Emmanuel Macron is now in the front line to find a solution to the political crisis,” said the newspaper Liberation.
France’s borrowing costs, a measure of investor confidence, on Tuesday surged slightly higher than those for Italy, long one of Europe’s debt laggards.
