The French government, which missed a deadline this week to set a blueprint to lower its debt and deficit, is struggling to meet fiscal requirements set by the E.U.

After 50 days of a caretaker government, President Emmanuel Macron has finally named former Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier as prime minister, tasked "with forming a unifying government to serve the country and the French people".

France's budgetary situation is "very serious", Prime Minister Michel Barnier told AFP on Wednesday, saying more information was needed to gauge the "precise reality" of French public finances.