PARIS (REUTERS)
French Prime Minister Michel Barnier was set to hand in his resignation on Thursday after far-right and leftist lawmakers voted to topple his government, plunging the euro zone's second-largest economy deeper into political crisis.
Barnier, a veteran politician who became prime minister barely three months ago, will become the shortest-serving prime minister in modern French history when President Emmanuel Macron approves his resignation.
The two men met for over an hour, French media said, adding that Barnier had now left the Elysee presidential palace. However, there was still no official confirmation of his resignation.
Any new prime minister will face the same challenges that led to Barnier's downfall, including in particular pushing the 2025 budget through a deeply divided parliament at a time when France needs to fix ailing public finances.
Much focus will also be on Macron himself after an online poll showed 64% of voters want him to resign.
Meanwhile, Macron will embark on trying to find a new prime minister.
Three sources told Reuters that Macron aimed to appoint a replacement swiftly, with one saying he wanted to name a premier before a ceremony to reopen the Notre-Dame Cathedral on Saturday, which U.S. President-elect Donald Trump and other global political leaders are due to attend.
The political turmoil in France further weakens a European Union already reeling from the implosion of Germany's coalition government, and comes just weeks before Trump returns to the White House.
The hard left and far right punished Barnier in a no-confidence vote on Wednesday evening for trying to push a social security budget through an unruly hung parliament without a vote.