French President Emmanuel Macron has named Sébastien Lecornu as the country's new prime minister, the Élysée Palace said on Tuesday. The 39-year-old, who had been serving as defence minister, is considered a close confidant of Macron.

France faces fresh political turmoil as President Emmanuel Macron appoints Sébastien Lecornu as the new Prime Minister after François Bayrou’s ouster in a confidence vote. Lecornu, 39, becomes the fifth premier in two years,

Sébastien Lecornu follows into the arena Michel Barnier and Francois Bayrou, neither of whom could forge a working majority.

Protesters blocked roads, lit blazes and were met with volleys of tear gas on Wednesday in Paris and elsewhere in France, heaping pressure on President Emmanuel Macron and making new Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu's first day in office a baptism of fire.

France is bracing for potential violence as tens of thousands of protesters are expected to join a day of disruption across the country. The "Block Everything" protests on Wednesday are