Where did France's culture of political compromise go, and is it coming back?

France's political culture has often been marked by protests rather than negotiation, but some analysts think the deeply divided National Assembly, where no single faction has an absolute majority, could be an opportunity to develop more of a culture of compromise. © AP - Daniel Cole

It took France nine long weeks to form a government after parliamentary elections delivered a deeply divided National Assembly with no faction able to govern alone. The new prime minister has called for compromise – but that won't be easy in a country where meeting in the middle is often synonymous with giving in.

Freshly picked conservative Prime Minister Michel Barnier finally presented his government on Saturday.