Macron is set to appoint new French prime minister in last-ditch move to tackle turmoil
Paris (AP): After a week of intense political turmoil, French President Emmanuel Macron is set to appoint a new prime minister on Friday in his latest bid to break the political deadlock that has gripped the country for more than a year, as France struggles with mounting economic challenges and ballooning debt.
The appointment is widely seen as the president's last chance to revive his second term, which runs until 2027. With no majority in the National Assembly to push through his agenda, Macron faces increasingly fierce criticism, even from within his own camp, and has little room to manoeuvre.
Outgoing Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu abruptly resigned on Monday, only hours after unveiling a new Cabinet. The shock resignation prompted calls for Macron to step down or dissolve parliament again. But they remained unanswered, with the president instead announcing on Wednesday that he would name a successor within 48 hours.
Over the past year, Macron's successive minority governments have collapsed in quick succession, leaving the European Union's second-largest economy mired in political paralysis as France is faced with a debt crisis. At the end of the first quarter of 2025, France's public debt stood at 3.346 trillion euros (USD 3.9 trillion), or 114 per cent of gross domestic product.
France's poverty rate also reached 15.4 per cent in 2023, its highest level since records began in 1996, according to the latest data available from the national statistics institute.
The economic and political struggles are worrying financial markets, ratings agencies and the European Commission, which has been pushing France to comply with EU rules limiting debt.
Uncertainty surrounds the choice of the next PM
Macron may turn to a figure from the left, who managed to form a coalition in the 2024 legislative elections, or opt for a technocratic government to sidestep partisan deadlock.
In any case, the new prime minister will have to seek compromises to avoid an immediate vote of no confidence and may even be forced to abandon the pension reform that gradually raises the retirement age from 62 to 64. Macron fought fiercely for the deeply unpopular measure, which was enacted into law in 2023 despite mass protests.
Lecornu argued that Macron's centrist bloc, its allies, and parts of the opposition could still rally to form a working majority. “There's a majority that can govern,” he said. “I feel that a path is still possible. It is difficult.”
The stalemate stems from Macron's shock decision in June 2024 to dissolve the National Assembly. The snap elections produced a hung parliament, with no bloc able to command a majority in the 577-seat chamber. The gridlock has unnerved investors, infuriated voters, and stalled efforts to curb France's spiralling deficit and public debt.
Without stable support, Macron's governments have stumbled from one crisis to the next, collapsing as they sought backing for unpopular spending cuts. Lecornu's resignation, just 14 hours after announcing his Cabinet, underscored the fragility of the president's coalition amid deep political and personal rivalries.
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PM must clarify whether he endorses Sarma's 'utterly shameful' remarks on Kharge: Priyanka
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New Delhi (PTI): Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Wednesday said the use of "abusive" language by Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma against Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge is "utterly shameful" and added Prime Minister Narendra Modi must clarify whether he endorses this "insult".
Sarma had triggered a row on Tuesday when he hit out at Kharge, saying that he was "speaking like a mad man" due to old age, after the latter put the onus on central agencies to probe the charges made against the Assam chief minister.
In a post in Hindi on X, Priyanka Gandhi said, "The kind of abusive and derogatory language used by Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma against the Congress president and Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Shri Mallikarjun Kharge, is utterly shameful and unacceptable."
She said Kharge is one of the most senior leaders in the country and serves as an enlightened representative not only of the Congress party but also of the Dalits and the marginalised sections of the nation.
"By insulting him, the BJP chief minister has insulted crores of people across the country," she said.
"Prime Minister Narendra Modi must clarify to the nation: does he endorse this insult directed at crores of Indians?" she said.
The Congress on Tuesday accused Sarma of insulting party chief Kharge and demanded an unconditional apology from him for his "deplorable conduct" that it alleged reflects the "anti-Dalit mindset" of the BJP.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday had said the use of "derogatory language" against party chief Mallikarjun Kharge by Sarma was an insult to the entire SC/ST community, and the silence of Prime Minister Modi on the matter "is not his helplessness, but his consent".
"If the prime minister sees an attack on the dignity of crores of Dalits in the country and does not speak up - he is not only shirking his responsibility, but is also a party to that insult," Gandhi said in a post in Hindi on X.
Gandhi said the use of "vulgar and derogatory language" by Sarma against Kharge "is entirely condemnable, shameful, and unacceptable".
"Kharge ji is a senior and popular Dalit leader of the country - his experience, stature, and prestige are unparalleled. Insulting him is not an insult to one individual alone, but also to crores of people from the SC-ST community in this country," he posted.
This, he said, just reflected the "old and premeditated mindset" of the BJP-RSS and was nothing new.
"Whether it is the insult to Babasaheb Ambedkar, belittling Dalit leaders, or personal attacks on representatives of the SC-ST community - the history of BJP and RSS bears witness that whenever a Dalit leader speaks the truth, they stoop to humiliate him," Gandhi said.
"This is their ideology, this is their true character and face," he added.
Posing a direct question to the prime minister, he asked, "Do you support Himanta Sarma's use of this language? Your silence is not helplessness, it is consent."
