PARIS — France’s reappointed Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu admitted Saturday that there weren’t “a lot of candidates” for his job and acknowledged he might not last long in the post amid the country’s deep political divides.
Lecornu, reinstated by President Emmanuel Macron late Friday after a week of political turmoil, urged calm and appealed for support from political parties to pass a budget for the European Union’s second-largest economy before key deadlines.
His appointment is viewed as Macron’s final attempt to revive his struggling second term, which runs until 2027.
Macron’s centrist alliance lacks a parliamentary majority and faces growing dissent within its own ranks.
Rivals across the political spectrum — from the far right to the far left — sharply criticized Macron’s decision to bring back Lecornu, France’s fourth prime minister in barely a year.
The country is grappling with mounting economic challenges, rising debt, and political paralysis that has raised alarm across the European Union.
“I don’t think there were a lot of candidates,” Lecornu told reporters during a visit to a police station in the Paris suburb of L’Hay-les-Roses.
Lecornu, who resigned Monday after just a month in office, said he agreed to return because of the urgent need to find financial solutions for France.
However, he said he would only stay “as long as conditions are met,” appearing to concede that a no-confidence vote could soon end his tenure.
“Either political forces help me and we accompany each other ... or they won’t,” he said.
He declined to say when a new government might be formed or who could be included but indicated it would not involve anyone seeking the presidency in 2027.
Lecornu also did not address opposition calls to repeal the controversial pension reform law that raised the retirement age.
Over the past year, Macron’s successive minority governments have collapsed one after another, leaving France mired in political deadlock as it faces a worsening debt crisis, market concerns, and rising poverty. — Agencies
