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His line up of new government ministers was only approved on Sunday night. Just 14 hours later, the Élysée announced this morning:

“Mr. Sébastien Lecornu submitted his government’s resignation to the President of the Republic, who accepted it.”

It’s a new low for French politics, which has been in freefall since Emmanuel Macron’s party lost its majority in elections last year.

Lecornu had promised to avoid the mistakes of his three predecessors since that election. But like the others, he failed to build a broad church.

His choice of ministers – familiar names from within his own ranks – did not go down well and this morning he accepted that the writing was on the wall.

Speaking in front of the official residence of the prime minister this morning, Sébastien Lecornu blamed egos and intransigence for his downfall.

“I found myself in a situation where I was ready to compromise, but each political party wanted the others to adopt its entire platform”, he complained.

France’s massive debt
Most urgent on the government’s to-do list was, and is, passing a new budget.

National spending is unaffordably high and the government is racking up debt at an alarming rate.

The European Commission has warned France about levels of spending that are well in excess of Eurozone rules.

Last month, the credit agency Fitch downgraded France’s rating due to the “political fragmentation” and concerns over the level of spending. It warned that French debt would reach 121 per cent of GDP by 2027.

Amongst European countries, only Italy and Greece have a higher debt-to-GDP ratio.

Yet finding a compromise which would allow a budget to pass a parliamentary vote has proven impossible.

No mood for compromise
Ideas from Lecornu’s predecessors, including cutting welfare spending and even dropping public holidays, were met with howls of anger from opposition parties.

Since the 2024 election, the Assemblée Nationale has broadly divided into three camps: A hard left bloc known as the New Popular Front, Macron’s centre/centre-right middle ground, and the far right National Rally, the party led by the president’s arch-rival, Marine Le Pen.

None of Macron’s succession of prime ministers have been able to find a compromise between these bitter factions.

More calls for new elections
This morning, Le Pen repeated her opinion that the only way forward is fresh elections.

It is a message echoed by the hard left.

“An unprecedented historical political situation is unfolding. We have a duty to respond by giving the people a voice again”, insisted Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader of the left-wing France Unbowed party.

Since opinion polls put Macron’s party way behind in third place, it is a call the president is unlikely to heed.

Lecornu will likely stay in post whilst Macron hunts for yet another replacement.

But the political situation is getting increasingly serious.

Whilst previous prime ministers have been brought down by votes of no confidence, Lecornu chose to fall on his own sword.

It is a shocking move for a political survivor who has served in every Macron government since the president was first elected in 2017.

Yet on his way out the door, Lecornu insisted that compromise would not be so hard.

“It wouldn’t take much to get there. By being more selfless and also by knowing how to show humility”, he said, without naming names.

There is no sign that is about to happen.