Melenchon says French left should form one group in new parliament

France's left-leaning parties which jointly campaigned as the Nupes alliance for Sunday's lower house election should now form one group to become the second-largest in the National Assembly after President Emmanuel Macron's centrists, Jean-Luc Melenchon said on Monday.

Melenchon, a far-left veteran, told reporters his suggestion was mainly based on the fact that, separately, the far-left, communists, socialists, and greens forming the Nupes would each have fewer members than the far-right Rassemblement National.