00:00In the meantime, though, some other main world news, because his first primary task from France is President Emmanuel Macron
00:06to get the country's fractious political parties to agree on a budget for what is one of the world's biggest economies.
00:12This is, of course, Sébastien Le Cornu, who has been the youngest defence minister in French history,
00:17an architect of a major military build-up through to 2030,
00:20who is now Macron's fifth prime minister of his second term after being named last night.
00:25Later today, the official handover is due to take place between François Beirut and Sébastien Cornu,
00:32and we're going to cross to the prime minister's official residence matinee.
00:34I'll talk to our reporter, who joins us from there, Clovis Casali.
00:37Clovis, it's a historic day, of course, once again for France.
00:42Let's not forget, an historic day now for the fourth time,
00:44because he's going to be the fifth prime minister in two and a half years in Emmanuel Macron's second term.
00:50Absolutely. Sébastien Le Cornu set also to be the third prime minister in less than a year.
00:58Take a look behind me, the courtyard of the Hôtel de Matignon,
01:01the prime minister's residence in preparation.
01:04You've got a red carpet on the steps.
01:07You've got mostly journalists and security forces and personnel also attesting the mics.
01:13It's midday. It's happening here at the Hôtel de Matignon.
01:16Sébastien Le Cornu, age 39, the former defence minister,
01:21set to become the next prime minister.
01:23And the Elysée Palace, President Macron wants him to then consult
01:28with the various political parties here in France
01:31in order to find the right people for the various jobs in government.
01:37There will be a government reshuffle.
01:40Will it be a big one? That's the question.
01:41And probably not, because the equilibrium isn't really changing.
01:47The government will still be leaning to the right with centrist figures,
01:52because, yes, Emmanuel Macron, the French president,
01:56has chosen to go with a very loyal ally, Sébastien Le Cornu,
02:01who's been part of all his governments since 2017.
02:05It's going to be very difficult for him, isn't it, Clévis?
02:08I mean, the crucial thing that he's got to do, that, let's face it,
02:10his two predecessors have completely failed to do,
02:13is to sort out France's budget.
02:18Difficult. Possibly impossible.
02:20Who knows what Sébastien Le Cornu is going to be able to achieve.
02:24He was picked for the job as prime minister,
02:26because Emmanuel Macron believes that he is the most likely person
02:31to strike some kind of alliance in Parliament,
02:35some kind of consensus over laws,
02:37because his job will be to really get bills passed in Parliament
02:43and that much-needed budget for France,
02:46one of the world's largest economies,
02:48one of the countries with a huge debt also.
02:52And that's what Sébastien Le Cornu, just like François Bayroux before,
02:56needs to tackle, those deficits.
02:59Sébastien Le Cornu, for our viewers,
03:01well, this is a centre-right figure.
03:04He used to be from the right-wing party, the UMP,
03:08the party of President Sarkozy.
03:10This was before Emmanuel Macron came into politics,
03:14really came onto the stage of politics in France.
03:18And Sébastien Le Cornu, therefore, has allies within Les Républicains,
03:23that party that had been governing previously under François Bayroux,
03:29with François Bayroux, should I say.
03:30So Sébastien Le Cornu has got allies on the right,
03:34in the centre also, of course, the centrist bloc of President Macron.
03:39And he's also been dining, it has been reported,
03:42with Marine Le Pen, the leader of the French far-right.
03:45Why? Not because he belongs to that party,
03:48or necessarily shares views with Marine Le Pen,
03:51but because he knows that that is a key figure in French politics.
03:56The French far-right has a very large number of MPs in Parliament,
04:00and therefore, if you need to pass laws,
04:03you need their support in some way or fashion.
04:06Don't expect the left-wing to give an easy time to Sébastien Le Cornu.
04:11The socialists, furious that Emmanuel Macron didn't choose one of theirs,
04:15one of a member of the left-wing, to be prime minister.
04:19So they will be opposing this government.
04:22And again, Emmanuel Macron has decided that his government
04:25needs to be centre and right-wing.
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