Macron shuns resignation calls after government collapse

Following the collapse of France's centre-right government, President Emmanuel Macron has rejected calls for his resignation.

In an address to the French people on Thursday evening, Macron said: "The mandate that you have democratically entrusted to me is a five-year mandate and I will fulfil it completely until its end."

Macron said it was his responsibility to ensure the proper functioning of the institutions, the independence of the country and the protection of the population.

The left-wing camp and right-wing nationalists led by Marine Le Pen toppled Prime Minister Michel Barnier's government on Wednesday with a vote of no confidence in the National Assembly after just three months in office.

This was immediately followed by calls for Macron's resignation from the hard-left party La France Insoumise, or France Unbowed in English.