Amid political turmoil, Macron unveils new cabinet lineup

PARIS — France's President Emmanuel Macron unveiled a new government on Sunday, after marathon talks to cobble together a cabinet and prevent the country from slipping deeper into a political crisis.

The lineup, a mix of old and new faces, represents Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu's second attempt to bring together a team to overcome months of deadlock and pass a much-needed austerity budget through a deeply divided parliament.

"A mission-driven government has been appointed to provide France with a budget before the end of the year," Lecornu wrote on X on Sunday.

The new team must present a 2026 draft budget before a Tuesday deadline, giving parliament the constitutionally required 70 days to scrutinize the plan before year's end.

But it faces a tough fight for its survival after the legislative chamber toppled Lecornu's two predecessors over cost-cutting measures, and with many disgruntled at his reappointment.

According to the lineup published by the president's office, Jean-Noel Barrot remained as foreign minister.

The outgoing labor minister Catherine Vautrin took on the defense portfolio.

Roland Lescure, a Macron loyalist, is in charge of the economy, with next year's budget as a top priority.

France has been mired in a political crisis ever since Macron called snap elections last year, intending to consolidate his power but ending up instead with a hung parliament and gains for the far right. After being named prime minister early last month, Lecornu presented his first cabinet on Oct 5, but resigned a day later after the lineup was criticized for not having enough new faces.

Macron reinstated Lecornu late on Friday, triggering outrage and vows from opponents to oust his cabinet at the first chance.

Lecornu, a former defense minister and Macron loyalist who has described himself as a "warrior monk", said last week the government should include technocrats but no one with any ambitions to run for president at the end of Macron's term in 2027. In the new cabinet announced on Sunday, the Paris police chief Laurent Nunez took over the interior ministry, replacing Bruno Retailleau, whose right-wing Republican party said it would not be part of the government.

Macron is under pressure from parties across the political spectrum, including the leftist Socialists, a swing group, which has threatened to topple his government unless he backs away from a 2023 pension reform that increased the retirement age from 62 to 64.

Republicans, once a key political ally, said at the weekend that they would only cooperate on a "bill-by-bill" basis. The far-right National Rally, the largest party in parliament and with ambitions to win power in 2027, has vowed to vote out any new Lecornu government.

Agencies Via Xinhua