Paris, France

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French President Emmanuel Macron announced on Friday (Dec 13) that Francois Bayrou will be the new prime minister of France. Bayrou, 73, is a veteran centrist leader and a close ally of President Macron. He is the founder of the Democratic Movement party which has been a part of Macron's ruling alliance since 2017. 

A report by the news agency Reuters said that Bayrou would be tasked with steering France out of its second major political crisis in the last six months.

The priority for Bayrou, a close Macron ally, would be passing a special law to roll over the 2024 budget, with a nastier battle over the 2025 legislation looming early next year.

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Bayrou is the sixth PM of Macron's mandate

Bayrou is the sixth prime minister of Macron's mandate after last week's toppling of Barnier, who became the country's shortest-serving prime minister and lasted only three months.

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Parliamentary pushback over the 2025 bill led to the downfall of Barnier's government.

The new cabinet expected in coming days

Reuters reported that Bayrou is expected to put forward his list of ministers in the coming days. The new cabinet will have to survive a no-confidence vote in a deeply divided parliament and thrash out the 2025 budget to limit economic turmoil. 

President Macron hopes that Bayrou can stave off no-confidence votes until at least July when France will be able to hold a new parliamentary election.

The previous political positions held by Bayrou

Before being named as the PM, Bayrou was appointed the justice minister in 2017 but resigned only three weeks later amid an investigation into his party's alleged fraudulent employment of parliamentary assistants. He was cleared of fraud charges this year.

The 73-year-old was a candidate in three presidential elections – 2002, 2007, and 2012.

Bayrou has been the mayor of the south-western town of Pau since 2014.

(With inputs from agencies)