French political crisis continues as Lecornu unveils new government – Europe live | World news
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Rassemblement National and the Union of the Right for the Republic table joint motion of no confidence
In a rare show of unity on the French right, Marine Le Pen and Éric Ciotti have submitted a joint motion of censure – the French equivalent of a motion of no confidence – on behalf of their parliamentary groups, the Rassemblement National (the National Rally) and the Union of the Right for the Republic (UDR).
Announcing the move on social media, Le Pen and Ciotti confirmed the motion had been officially lodged with the National Assembly.
“In addition to the security, migration, economic and budgetary crises, our country has been in an unprecedented political crisis under the Fifth Republic since the beginning of September,” read a statement.
“In this situation, we must turn our attention to the constitution. It is clear that invoking Article 12, and therefore dissolving the National Assembly, is the most effective and democratic way to lead our country out of the deadlock.”
Key events
In other news, German investigators and banking watchdog BaFin have shut down over 1,400 illegal domains in eastern Europe that were involved in cybertrading fraud, officials said in a joint statement on Monday.
Dubbed Operation Heracles, the probe was conducted by Baden Wuerttemberg state criminal police and BaFin, Europol and Bulgarian authorities in an effort to crack down on those facilitating the use of fraudulent trading accounts, Reuters reported.
Users of the websites were directed to brokers operating from call centres abroad who would encourage them to invest large sums. For many it took months to notice that their money was not being invested, the authorities said.
“The perpetrators are becoming increasingly professional,” said Birgit Rodolphe of BaFin. “They use artificial intelligence to churn out illegal websites and use them to lure investors into traps.”
This operation follows a previous shutdown of 800 illegal domains in June of this year. There have since been 20 million attempts to access them.
“The measures significantly weakened the criminal actors by specifically disabling their technical infrastructure,” the authorities said.
Portugal’s far right suffers setback in local elections
Portugal’s far-right Chega party has been dealt a sharp setback in municipal elections, winning just three mayoralties out of 308, far below the 30 it had predicted after its surge in national politics earlier this year.
The result marks a steep fall from Chega’s 23% share in May’s parliamentary election, which made it the country’s official opposition. On Sunday, its vote share dropped to about 12%, with the party finishing behind independents and even the Portuguese Communist party in total mayorships.
The ruling centre-right Social Democratic party (PSD) emerged strongest, securing 136 municipalities, including Lisbon and Porto, up from 114 four years ago. The centre-left Socialists won 128.
Chega’s leader, André Ventura, admitted the results were disappointing. “Today we took a first step in that direction, but we are still far from that goal,” he said, arguing that building local roots was key to future national power.
Read the Guardian Europe correspondent Jon Henley’s report here:
National Assembly president Yaël Braun-Pivet has welcomed the appointment of Sébastien Lecornu’s new government, calling for calm and constructive debate as parliament prepares to convene.
“Our institutions are strong and now ready to work in the interests of the French people,” Braun-Pivet said on social media. “Posturing and political manoeuvring must give way to constructive discussion before the National Assembly. Let the parliamentary debate begin!”
Lecornu’s ‘mission-driven’ new cabinet
France’s prime minister, Sébastien Lecornu, has unveiled a new government just two days after being reappointed, in a bid to restore order after one of the most turbulent weeks of Emmanuel Macron’s presidency.
The reshuffle, announced late on Sunday, mixes senior civil servants with political veterans – several of whom had already been named in Lecornu’s first, short-lived cabinet. That lineup collapsed after only 14 hours amid public and political backlash, forcing the 39-year-old prime minister to resign and plunging Paris into crisis.
Among those staying on are Gérald Darmanin as justice minister, Amélie de Montchalin at the budget ministry and Jean-Noël Barrot as foreign minister – all centrists close to Macron.
Roland Lescure, another Macron ally, keeps the economy and finance brief and faces the daunting task of pushing through a 2026 budget while reining in France’s mounting deficit. Lecornu is due to present the fiscal plan on Monday before outlining his priorities in parliament later this week.
The new cabinet also includes Catherine Vautrin, a conservative and former health and labour minister, who becomes defence minister. Conservatives Annie Genevard and Rachida Dati remain at agriculture and culture respectively – a decision that prompted their party, Les Républicains, to expel them after its leadership voted against joining the government.
Paris police chief Laurent Nunez replaces Bruno Retailleau as interior minister, while former SNCF rail boss Jean-Pierre Farandou becomes labour minister.
Lecornu described his lineup as a “mission-driven government” tasked with producing a budget before year’s end. “Only one thing matters: the interests of the country,” he wrote on social media.
Sarkozy to learn when and where he will begin prison term over Libya funding case
Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy will learn today when and where he will begin serving a prison sentence for criminal conspiracy in a scheme to fund his 2007 presidential campaign with money from Libya.
The 70-year-old, who has consistently denied wrongdoing, will meet the National Financial Prosecutor’s Office (PNF) in Paris for what officials described as a short, procedural appointment. The PNF will tell him “the date, the place and the hour he has to be there,” said spokesperson Bérénice Dinh, adding that details will not be made public to avoid media intrusion.
Sarkozy, who led France from 2007 to 2012, became the first former president in modern French history to be sentenced to prison when a Paris court handed him a five-year term on 25 September. The judges ruled the sentence should take immediate effect, citing “the seriousness of the disruption to public order” caused by the offence.
He is expected to serve time under special security conditions, likely in a segregated wing of La Santé prison in Paris. Once incarcerated, he may appeal for release, with judges given up to two months to rule on his request.
Sarkozy was cleared of three other charges. The court found no direct evidence that Libyan funds were used in his 2007 campaign or for his personal gain, though it said he had “prepared corruption at the highest level” while serving as interior minister and presidential candidate between 2005 and 2007.
Sarkozy has long argued he is the victim of political retribution, claiming the case stems from his role in the 2011 military intervention that helped topple Libya’s leader Muammar Gaddafi.
Read the Guardian’s Paris correspondent Angelique Chrisafis’ analysis of Sarkozy’s sentence here:
EU says Russia ‘gambling with war’ after airspace violations — AFP
EU diplomat Kaja Kallas said on Monday that Russia is “gambling with war” after a series of drone and fighter jet incursions into EU airspace, AFP reports.
Nato has stepped up air defences along its eastern flank, accusing Moscow of testing allied responses with repeated drone crossings and a recent jet incursion into Estonian territory.
“Every time a Russian drone or plane violates our airspace, there is a risk of escalation,” Kallas said during a visit to Kyiv, calling for Europe to turn its economic strength into “military deterrence.”
Politico Europe is reporting that four French MPs from across the political spectrum will today submit a cross-party bill on proportional representation.
The cross-party group includes Erwan Balanant from the centrist MoDem, Jérémie Iordanoff of the Greens, Marie Récalde from the Socialist Party, and Guillaume Gouffier-Cha from Renaissance, Macron’s party.
According to Politico’s Playbook Paris newsletter, the bill is intended to show that “there is a way out of the institutional crisis” gripping France, rather than to put pressure on prime minister Sébastien Lecornu ahead of his policy speech.
Rassemblement National and the Union of the Right for the Republic table joint motion of no confidence
In a rare show of unity on the French right, Marine Le Pen and Éric Ciotti have submitted a joint motion of censure – the French equivalent of a motion of no confidence – on behalf of their parliamentary groups, the Rassemblement National (the National Rally) and the Union of the Right for the Republic (UDR).
Announcing the move on social media, Le Pen and Ciotti confirmed the motion had been officially lodged with the National Assembly.
“In addition to the security, migration, economic and budgetary crises, our country has been in an unprecedented political crisis under the Fifth Republic since the beginning of September,” read a statement.
“In this situation, we must turn our attention to the constitution. It is clear that invoking Article 12, and therefore dissolving the National Assembly, is the most effective and democratic way to lead our country out of the deadlock.”
Trump warns Russia he may send Ukraine Tomahawk missiles
Donald Trump has warned that the US could send Ukraine long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles if Moscow fails to end its war, signalling a potential escalation in Washington’s stance towards Vladimir Putin.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday after a call with Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Trump said: “I might say, ‘Look, if this war is not going to get settled, I’m going to send them Tomahawks.’ The Tomahawk is an incredible weapon, very offensive weapon. And honestly, Russia does not need that.”
Zelenskyy described the conversation as “very productive,” saying the two leaders discussed strengthening Ukraine’s air defences and long-range capabilities. “We work on it,” he told Fox News, when asked whether the weapons had been approved.
The Kremlin responded sharply. Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the proposal was a matter of “extreme concern,” while former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev warned that supplying Tomahawks “could end badly for everyone,” claiming Moscow would be unable to distinguish between conventional and nuclear missiles.
“How should Russia respond? Exactly!” Medvedev wrote on Telegram, in what appeared to be a veiled nuclear threat.
Russia has dismissed reports that one of its submarines was in distress after surfacing off the coast of northern France, insisting the vessel was simply following routine navigation rules.
Nato’s Maritime Command last week shared photos of a French navy frigate tracking a Russian submarine near Brittany, saying the alliance maintained “constant vigilance and maritime awareness across the Atlantic.”
The images prompted speculation after a Telegram channel known for leaking Russian security information claimed the Novorossiysk submarine had suffered serious technical problems, including a fuel leak.
On Monday, Russia’s Black Sea Fleet denied the claims, saying the diesel-powered submarine had surfaced “in accordance with international navigation rules” while transiting the English Channel after operations in the Mediterranean.
Emmanuel Macron rejects calls to resign
Speaking from Egypt, French president Emmanuel Macron dismissed opposition calls for his resignation, insisting he would remain in office to safeguard the country’s stability.
“Never forget that the mandate given by the French people is to serve, to serve and serve, and to provide answers to the questions of everyday French people, and to do everything possible for the independence of France,” Macron told reporters in Sharm el-Sheikh. “That is the only thing that matters. The rest is the government’s business … I will continue to ensure stability,” he added.
Macron also hit out at his opponents, accusing them of fuelling the current unrest. “Those political forces which have worked to destabilise prime minister Lecornu are solely responsible for the sense of disorder in France,” he said.
Morning opening: Political crisis in France continues as European leaders gather for Gaza ‘peace summit’
France’s political crisis has entered a volatile new phase after prime minister Sébastien Lecornu unveiled his new government on Sunday night – just two days after being reappointed.
The reshuffle, intended to steady the ship after last week’s chaotic collapse of his first cabinet, has instead reignited tensions across the political spectrum and left president Emmanuel Macron facing the gravest challenge of his second term.
Far-right leader Marine Le Pen declared that her the National Rally party and its allies will move to bring down the government, announcing a motion of no confidence in parliament. She urged Macron to dissolve the National Assembly and call new elections “to allow the French people to express themselves and choose a new majority for change.”
Mathilde Panot, leader of the left wing France Unbowed, said her party had filed its own no-confidence motion “that will bring down Lecornu’s new government”.
“The country has no time to lose,” she added. “Lecornu will fall and Macron will follow.”
The threat piles further pressure on an administration already struggling to command authority after Lecornu’s record-short tenure and a wave of anger over his cabinet choices.
The turmoil coincides with another seismic moment for France’s political establishment: former president Nicolas Sarkozy will today learn when he will begin serving a prison sentence for corruption.
Macron himself will be busy however, joining European leaders heading to Egypt today for the Gaza peace summit in Sharm el-Sheikh. The French president will be joined by Keir Starmer, Giorgia Meloni, Pedro Sánchez along with Donald Trump and the Egyptian president, Abdel Fatah al-Sisi to discuss the ‘peace summit’ in Gaza.
I will bring you all reactions here.
It’s Monday, 13 October 2025, I’m Matthew Pearce, and this is Europe Live.
Good morning.
