France's new PM courts the left a day after ratings downgrade | News

PARIS, Sept 14, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - France's new Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu held out an olive branch to the left on Saturday, ruling out his predecessor's plan to cut two public holidays to help slash the deficit. His gesture came a day after the Fitch ratings agency downgraded France's credit rating -- measuring its ability to pay back debts -- from "AA-" to "A+". The US agency, one of the top global institutions gauging the financial solidity of sovereign borrowers, also warned that France's debt mountain would keep rising until 2027 unless urgent action was taken. Political leaders on the far right and hard left laid the blame at the feet of President Emmanuel Macron, calling for a break from...