President Emmanuel Macron on Friday named centrist politician François Bayrou as France's new prime minister, a week after lawmakers toppled the government and plunged the country into political uncertainty.
A veteran centrist, Bayrou raises hackles on the left – which is wary of him continuing the president's policies – and on the right, where he is disliked by influential former president Nicolas Sarkozy.
Macron has been under mounting pressure to choose a candidate capable of uniting a deeply divided parliament, and securing the passage of a budget to address France's growing debt.
Bayrou will need to forge a consensus on how to tackle the country's rising budget deficit, now at 6.1 percent – far above the 4.4 percent projected for the end of 2024.
His appointment follows two days of talks at the Élysée Palace, at which Macron met with party leaders to find a candidate capable of bridging divides and passing next year’s budget.
The far-right National Rally (RN) and hard-left France Unbowed (LFI) parties were not included in the discussions.
Macron had been widely expected to name the new prime minister on Thursday evening.
The delay underscores the political challenges posed by the fractured lower house of parliament, a result of July's snap elections.
France unveils emergency budget law to prevent state shutdown
Divided parliament
The parliament remains split between a leftist alliance, the centrists and the conservatives, with the far-right RN complicating efforts to secure a stable government capable of surviving no confidence votes.
Speaking in a televised address last week, Macron rejected mounting calls for his resignation and vowed to serve his full term until 2027.
Former prime minister Michel Barnier, whose government had support only from Macron's centrist camp and his own conservative political family, was felled last week in a confidence vote over his cost-cutting budget.
His caretaker administration on Wednesday reviewed a bill designed to keep the lights of government on without a formal financial plan for 2025, allowing tax collection and borrowing to continue.
Lawmakers are expected to widely support the draft law when it comes before parliament on Monday.
