Lecornu inaugurated as France's new PM in handover ceremony

France's new Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has officially started his new role following the handover ceremony on September 10.  

He was greeted by ousted François Bayrou at the Hôtel Matignon, the official residence of the prime minister, Caliber.Az reports.

The event was broadcast live on Reuters.

The 39-year-old was named French President Emmanuel Macron’s new choice just 24 hours after a vote of confidence removed Bayrou as head of government. He had been serving as Minister of the Armed Forces since Élisabeth Borne’s caretaker government in 2022.

Lecornu wrote on social media that he had been entrusted by the president with “building a government with clear direction: defending our independence and our strength, serving the French people, and [ensuring] political and institutional stability for the unity of our country.”

His immediate priority is addressing France’s soaring public debt, which reached €3.3tn earlier this year, representing 114% of the country’s GDP.

Bayrou had proposed €44bn in budget cuts, but his decision to put these plans to a vote of confidence was always likely to fail. Ultimately, France’s National Assembly voted to remove his government by 364 votes to 194.

Lecornu’s appointment was welcomed by centrist allies, including Marc Fesneau from Bayrou’s MoDem party, who urged all political forces to reach a compromise “for the stability of the country and its recovery, especially its budget.”

By Nazrin Sadigova