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France’s new Prime Minister S\u00e9bastien Lecornu began his second day in office with talks with the leaders of the parliamentary chambers.<\/p>\n
Lecornu faces the uphill task of building a majority for his agenda, after two previous prime ministers were ousted by lawmakers in the span of nine months.<\/p>\n
The former defence minister, who is a close ally of President Emmanuel Macron, met on Thursday with Ya\u00ebl Braun-Pivet, president of the National Assembly, and G\u00e9rard Larcher, president of the Senate.<\/p>\n
France is heavily indebted, and Lecornu faces pressure to present a budget for the coming year with planned savings.<\/p>\n
But the National Assembly, or lower house, has been divided among three factions since last year’s snap elections: Macron’s centrist camp, a left-wing alliance and Marine Le Pen’s far-right nationalist bloc. As none of the factions have an absolute majority, the parliament is deadlocked.<\/p>\n
Lecornu’s two immediate predecessors – Michel Barnier and Fran\u00e7ois Bayrou – both lost confidence votes as they tried to push through unpopular austerity measures in the eurozone’s second-biggest economy.<\/p>\n
After meeting Lecornu, Braun-Pivet said the French want to see politicians unite: “It is up to the prime minister to create this momentum, and up to members of parliament to overcome divisions to move our country forward.”<\/p>\n
Lecornu will consult with political forces across the country to prepare a budget and reach agreements on future decisions, the \u00c9lys\u00e9e Palace said this week.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, the same day that Lecornu was sworn into office, nearly 200,000 people protested in nationwide demonstrations and blockades against austerity measures. Some clashes occurred, and 675 people were arrested.<\/p>\n
The protests had been planned for weeks, even before the previous government of Bayrou fell on Monday and Lecornu was named by Macron as prime minister.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n