Caretaker French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu struck a cautiously optimistic tone on Wednesday, saying a deal could potentially be reached on the country's budget by year-end, making the risk of a snap election more remote.
Lecornu's remarks came as he was set to wrap up talks on Wednesday with various parties and report back to President Emmanuel Macron on whether he has found a way to end France's worst political crisis in decades.
"There is a willingness to have a budget for France before December 31 of this year," Lecornu told reporters after meetings on Tuesday with conservatives and centre-right parties, and before meeting the Socialist Party.
"And this willingness creates momentum and convergence, obviously, which distances the prospects of dissolution (of parliament)," he said.
Lecornu added that he would meet Macron later on Wednesday as planned to discuss the results of his discussions.
Opposition presses for snap elections
President Macron has faced calls from the opposition to call snap parliamentary elections or resign, to end the political crisis.
Lecornu, France's fifth prime minister in two years, tendered his resignation and that of his government on Monday, hours after it was announced on Sunday, making it the shortest-lived administration in modern French history.
That came after allies and foes alike had threatened to topple the new government, with Lecornu saying that would make it impossible for him to do his job.
However, Macron requested that he stay in his post for 48 hours and work toward a compromise on the budget.
Former French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe, once Macron’s ally, called for an early presidential election on Tuesday, citing the country’s deepening political crisis.
The crisis is exacerbated by France’s record public debt, €3.4 trillion ($4 trillion), now the European Union’s third-highest after Greece and Italy, putting pressure on the government to pass urgent economic measures.
