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STORY: France may finally have a new Prime Minister.

French President Emmanuel Macron appointed Michel Barnier, the European Union's former Brexit negotiator, to the role on Thursday (September 5)

Hoping to end the country's political paralysis after an inconclusive snap election in June left his centrist coalition losing dozens of seats and no party winning an absolute majority.

:: The search for the next French PM

A string of potential prime ministers have been considered in recent weeks.

But none mustered enough support to guarantee a stable government, which was Macron's key criteria.

As the hunt dragged on, public finances deteriorated. And now time is running out to prepare France's 2025 budget.

Barnier, will quickly face this particular baptism of fire.

And if parties in the bitterly divided parliament are not satisfied with the budget, a vote of no confidence could be triggered.

:: Who is Michel Barnier?

At 73, Barnier will be the oldest prime minister in France's modern political history, taking over from Gabriel Attal, who was the youngest.

A staunch pro-European and a moderate career politician, he first became a lawmaker aged 27.

Barnier held roles in several French governments, including foreign minister and agriculture minister.

But is best known abroad for having led the EU's talks with Britain over its exit from the bloc from 2016 to 2021.

:: How have other French parties reacted?

Leaders of the far-right National Rally (RN), parliament's biggest single party, signaled on Thursday that the party would not immediately block Barnier, but could do so later if their demands were not met.

The leftwing alliance that won June's election accused Macron of ignoring the snap election result by picking a conservative.

It called for demonstrations against Barnier's selection but does not have enough seats to block the choice on its own.