Lecornu Prime Minister: What Does the European Press Say after Macron’s New Sleight of Hand?

IT’S EMBARRASSING: A “feeling of the end of the century”, a bad boulevard theater, our neighbors are not kind to the French president, Emmanuel Macron

How amusing it must be at the moment not to be French. The announcement made by Emmanuel Macron Friday evening of the renewal of Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister, while the latter had resigned a few days ago, largely caused a reaction from the political class. And of course our European neighbors. What do the newspapers say?

In the United Kingdom

The British daily Financial Times believes that this umpteenth jolt quite simply marks the end of Macronism. “After a week of chaos […] it has become increasingly clear that France’s nearly decade-long experience with Macron’s rebellious centrist policies is coming to an end”, the newspaper writes, while that the popularity of the head of state is at its lowest.

The president’s “unprecedented” choice comes as the political crisis worsens in France, deplores him The Guardian, highlighting the “pressure” exerted on the Prime Minister “to form a government quickly”. Even in record time, since the 2026 draft budget must be presented on Monday.

In Spain

There is “a feeling of the end of the century”, judges the left-wing daily El Pais, observing “a completely isolated leader, hated by a fringe of his own party, stuck in a delusional spiral of decline”. And added: The brilliant technocrat, the reformist without a party, the philosopher and the banker who became president is outdated. He resists, he clings to power. Nothing more.

In Germany

The Spiegel ironically about Emmanuel Macron’s “bad comedy”, a boulevard theater where “the secret lover, who had been escorted towards the exit, returns through the bedroom window”. He is especially worried about a “dangerous downward spiral”.

“For weeks, the French political drama has worried the European Union’s partners as well as the country’s creditors”, recalls the newspaper. “The country seems ungovernable, public debt is increasing unchecked, and the economy is suffering”.