The Elysee Palace announced – today, Monday – that French Prime Minister Elizabeth Bourne submitted her resignation to President Emmanuel Macron.
This comes as Macron seeks to give new momentum to his second term ahead of the European Parliament elections and the Olympic Games that Paris will host this summer.
Macron raised speculation about a government reshuffle last December by promising a new political initiative, after 2023 witnessed political crises resulting from controversial reforms.
In recent months, Macron’s government has dealt with unpopular reforms, such as the pension file, or the controversial immigration law that has caused a deep division in his camp.
The rise of the right-wing group
At the same time, Macron is facing the rise of the far-right National Rally party, which is leading in opinion polls for the European elections next June, and National Rally leader Marine Le Pen came in second place in the presidential elections in 2017 and 2022 behind Macron.
Macron had received Bourne – yesterday evening, Sunday – to discuss “important issues”, according to the Elysee. Macron’s office said that the discussion focused on the floods in northern France and the cold wave that the country is awaiting, but observers suggested that they had discussed a widely expected ministerial reshuffle.
Under the French system, the President of the Republic sets general policies, but the Prime Minister is responsible for the day-to-day management of the government.
Borne has assumed the presidency of the French government since mid-May 2022, and it is not yet clear when a new government will be formed in France, or who will assume its presidency.
