European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is warning lawmakers not to fall for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s attempts to divide Europe and wants them to work together for the bloc’s 450 million citizens.

At the heart of this "crisis" – a word that seems to have spent an entire year dominating French newspaper headlines – is President Emmanuel Macron's widely derided decision, in June 2024, to call a snap parliamentary election in order to "clarify" the balance of power in parliament.

French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu resigned after less than a month in office on Monday and less than 24 hours after naming a new government that prompted a key coalition ally to withdraw support.

A close ally of Mr Macron’s and a politician with decades of experience, Mr Bayrou implored the National Assembly moments before the vote on Monday to back his budget, saying France’s debts were “submerging us”. "You have the power to bring down ...

Sebastien Lecornu had tendered his government's resignation only hours after announcing his cabinet line-up, making it the shortest-lived administration in modern French history.

“The interests of France require Emmanuel Macron to resign in order to preserve our institutions and to unblock a situation that has been unavoidable since the absurd dissolution [of parliament in 2024],” said David Lisnard, LR vice-president, on X.

France's new prime minister, Sébastien Lecornu, announces he will not use special constitutional powers to force his budget through parliament