France's Macron accepts centrist's backing in 'turning point'

French presidential candidate Emmanuel Macron told AFP Wednesday he accepted the offer of an "alliance" with veteran centrist Francois Bayrou and said it was a "turning point" in the campaign.

Macron said the alliance proposed by Bayrou reflected the same "values and ideas" as his own En Marche (On the Move) movement which he formed in April as a vehicle to launch a bid for the presidency.

Macron said Bayrou's offer "fully reflects the process of renewal and coming together that we have supported since the start. That is why I accept it."

Bayrou, who ran three times for president, winning more than 18 percent of the vote in the 2007 election, said he would not be a candidate this year but would throw his support behind Macron.

He rounded on far-right candidate Marine Le Pen, who is currently leading the race, saying she posed a "major and immediate threat for our country and Europe".

France's democracy has "broken down", Bayrou warned.

Macron, a 39-year-old former economy minister, has made rapid progress in the campaign and polls earlier this month showed he could reach the second round runoff of the election where he would be likely to face Le Pen.

However a poll released Tuesday showed conservative candidate Francois Fillon moving back in front of Macron in a sign that he is shaking off the negative effect of a "fake jobs" scandal involving accusations he paid his wife hundreds of thousands of euros for parliamentary work she may not have done.