Pressure on Emmanuel Macron to speak out and address the French public amid fear of 'regime crisis' which could make the country ungovernable after fraught elections

Emmanuel Macron was last night under increasing pressure to address the French public amid concerns a political deadlock will make the nation ungovernable.

President Macron is yet to comment publicly after staving off the much-anticipated hard-Right surge in Sunday’s National Assembly elections, although there was no overall winner.

His silence comes despite fears a hung parliament of blocs with barely any ideological overlap will see uncertainty reign.

The Left-wing New Popular Front unexpectedly won 188 seats, 27 ahead of Mr Macron’s centrists, with Marine Le Pen’s National Rally (RN) further behind in third, after moderate candidates agreed to stand aside for one another so as not to split the anti-nationalist vote.

Frederic-Pierre Vos, a former RN party lawyer elected in north Paris, said the hung parliament would mean an ‘ungovernable France’, providing fresh opportunities for RN in 2027 when Mr Macron is due to stand down.

Bruno Le Maire, France’s economic minister, warned of a ‘regime crisis’. He said: ‘The forces of the National Assembly are scattered. Their ideas are even more so. We have a pressing need for consistency and lucidity... let us return to reality.’ 

Mr Macron’s only intervention since the exit polls signalled defeat for Ms Le Pen was to refuse the resignation of his prime minister.

Gabriel Attal, 35, offered to stand down barely six months after his appointment, following a sobering night at the ballot box. But the Elysee said France’s youngest ever premier will stay in post ‘for the time being’.

Any new government will find it difficult to pass legislation and make tough spending choices to keep the country’s debts from getting out of hand.

The president nevertheless faces the prospect of attempting to form alliances – a task made virtually impossible due to his hostility towards both Ms Le Pen, and Left-wing firebrand Jean-Luc Melenchon, who masterminded the New Popular Front’s surge.

Gerald Darmanin, who served as interior minister under Mr Attal, said it was ‘out of the question to govern or support a coalition’ which would have a link with RN or the Left-wing bloc. 

A Nato summit in Washington starts today and millions of visitors are expected to flock to Paris for the Olympics this month.

And while the crestfallen RN endured a disappointing result, it did increase its vote share, despite accusing ‘the establishment’ of scuppering its attempted powergrab through coordinated voting efforts.

French airport workers will strike next week – nine days before the Olympic Games begin in Paris. Unions are demanding that all staff receive a bonus because the Games take place during the summer holidays.