The French president’s close ally, centrist François Bairou, whose name is often mentioned to succeed caretaker prime minister Michel Barnier, was expected at the presidential palace for a meeting with Emmanuel Macron around 08:30 local time (09:30 Greek time ), according to sources close to the consultations.

The president of the centrist Democratic Movement party already had a phone conversation last Thursday night with the French president, who has pledged to announce the name of his new prime minister this morning.

At the moment, it is not known whether Macron is welcoming the 73-year-old Bayrou to the Elysee to announce his appointment to the position of prime minister or, on the contrary, to explain to him the reasons why this will not happen.

Macron postponed announcing the name of the new prime minister until this morning, his office said yesterday, while on Tuesday he had said he wanted to announce the future head of the French government within 48 hours.

The new governing group is expected to replace the one led by Michel Barnier, who resigned last week after far-right and left-wing MPs voted against his government, plunging France into its second major political crisis in six months.