President Emmanuel Macron proposes to cut French parliament seats by a third

In an address to the two chambers gathered at the Palace of Versailles, Macron said the change would have "positive effects on the general quality of parliamentary work".

French president Emmanuel Macron (File |AP) 

VERSAILLES: French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday proposed a one-third reduction in the number of lawmakers in both houses of parliament.

In an address to the two chambers gathered at the Palace of Versailles, Macron said the change -- which he proposed while running for president -- would have "positive effects on the general quality of parliamentary work".

The Senate has 348 members, while the lower house National Assembly has 577.