Macron on ‘last chance’ as he promises new French prime minister within 48 hours

French president Emmanuel Macron is set to name his sixth prime minister in less than two years, hoping the new appointment can navigate a budget through a deeply divided legislature.

An announcement from Mr Macron’s office on Wednesday said a new premier would be named within 48 hours. This follows two days of intensive talks, led by outgoing prime minister Sebastien Lecornu, aimed at resolving France’s most severe political crisis in decades.

This political paralysis has made the passage of a belt-tightening budget exceptionally challenging, a situation exacerbated by investors’ growing concerns over France’s expanding deficit.

Government spokesperson Aurore Berge told RTL radio: “The question that is posed today is whether there are enough people who are responsible.” She warned: “I think this is the last chance.”

Several names were being floated in political circles, including former socialist prime minister Bernard Cazeneuve, head of the public auditor Pierre Moscovici, and veteran centrist Jean-Louis Borloo.

Mr Lecornu tendered his and his government’s resignation on Monday, hours after announcing the cabinet lineup, making it the shortest-lived administration in modern France.

He said in a television interview on Wednesday that he had learnt, during talks Mr Macron asked him to hold with party leaders after he resigned, that a majority of lawmakers opposed holding a snap parliamentary election, and that there was a path, though perhaps a tough one, to passing a budget by the end of the year.

Another key issue is Mr Macron’s 2023 pension overhaul, which gradually raises the retirement age from 62 to 64. Members of the left have called for the law to be repealed or suspended.

For now, rival parties have largely stuck to their views on how to proceed, and there has been no indication of who could be the next prime minister.

The Socialists said Mr Macron should appoint a prime minister from the left. The Republicans, who are part of the outgoing government, said they would not support a leftist premier.

Meanwhile, Manuel Bompard, of the hard-left France Unbowed (LFI), repeated his call for Mr Macron to resign. Jordan Bardella, president of the far-right National Rally (RN), reiterated his party’s demand for a new parliamentary election.

On the streets of Paris, people said they hoped for more stability.

“Well, having a prime minister who stays in office would be a good start, I think,” said Mathilde Marcel, 40. “And then, obviously, things need to move forward and reforms need to be implemented.”

The crisis has caused jitters on financial markets, but bonds held on to gains from the day before, based on optimism that France can avoid a snap parliamentary election and agree on a budget.