Macron appoints Michel Barnier as prime minister

https://www.lemonde.fr/en/politics/article/2024/09/05/macron-appoints-michel-barnier-as-prime-minister_6724914_5.html

by LeMonde_en

27 comments

  1. French President Emmanuel Macron appointed Michel Barnier, ex-Brexit negotiator, as prime minister on Thursday, September 5, after almost two months of deadlock following legislative elections that produced no clear majority in Parliament.

    Barnier, 73, a right-wing former minister and European commissioner, was the European Union’s negotiator on Brexit. He has been all but invisible in French political life since failing to win his party’s nomination to challenge Macron for the presidency in 2022.

    France had been without a permanent government since the July 7 polls, in which the left formed the largest faction in a hung parliament with Macron’s centrists and the far right comprising the other major groups. Amid the political deadlock Macron, who has less than three years of his term remaining, ran down the clock as the Olympics and Paralympics took place in Paris, to the growing frustration of opponents.

    Never in the history of the Fifth Republic – which began with constitutional reform in 1958 – had France gone so long without a permanent government, leaving the previous administration led by Prime Minister Gabriel Attal in place as caretakers.

    To the fury of the left, Macron [refused to accept the nomination of a left-wing premier](https://www.lemonde.fr/en/politics/article/2024/08/27/why-macron-refused-to-name-the-left-wing-alliance-s-candidate-for-prime-minister_6722256_5.html), arguing such a figure would have no chance of surviving a confidence motion in parliament. France’s left-wing New Popular Front alliance had demanded that the president pick their candidate Lucie Castets, a 37-year-old economist and civil servant with a history of left-wing activism.

    The new prime minister will face the most delicate of tasks in seeking to agree legislation in a highly polarised Assemblée Nationale at a time of immense challenges. An October 1 deadline is now looming for the new government to file a draft budget law for 2025. With debts piling up to 110% of annual output, France has this year suffered a credit rating cut from [Standard and Poor’s](https://www.lemonde.fr/en/france/article/2024/05/31/standard-poor-s-downgrades-france-s-credit-rating-from-aa-to-aa_6673352_7.html) and been [told off by the European Commission](https://www.lemonde.fr/en/economy/article/2024/06/19/european-commission-reprimands-france-and-six-countries-for-breaking-budget-rules_6675175_19.html) for excessive deficits.

  2. >To the fury of the left, Macron [refused to accept the nomination of a left-wing premier](https://www.lemonde.fr/en/politics/article/2024/08/27/why-macron-refused-to-name-the-left-wing-alliance-s-candidate-for-prime-minister_6722256_5.html), arguing such a figure would have no chance of surviving a confidence motion in parliament. 

    So what are the chances of Barnier surviving a confidence motion in Parliament ? Would the Left (& parts of the Right) wing support him ?

  3. So, how would this work politically? Can the present left wing opposition ‘coalition’ ‘accept’ Barnier, or is it just a matter of time until a confidence vote is cast that he is going to fail?

  4. With the tacit approval of the far right, Macron and his “centrists” have formed a de facto coalition with the right. So much for the Front républicain.

  5. I’ve seen this one with Italy before (Draghi) and I remember what happened next.

  7. So the left was unable to compromise and the centrists turned to the right? And now the new coalition would be center + right, with the left being in opposition? Am I getting this right?

  8. Macron stole the election. If he was a south-american president, everyone would call him a dictator.

  9. So Macron is basically going my way or the highway. The only thing he was always going to accept was a candidate from his own party, and would rather join the fascists than compromise.

  10. Why doesn’t it surprise me that it’s a guy almost nobody voted for.

  11. We’re gonna burn this place down it’s gonna make von Choltitz roll in his grave I swear

  13. Macron is really a moron and I totally understand why the French hate him.

  14. This is a betrayal of the results of the election, not because Macron nominated a pm from a super minoritary party, that doesn’t matter. The problem is that the winner of the legislative elections, the only block that could get an absolute majority was the Republican Front, the group of parties that withdrew their candidates in the second round to defeat the far right. And the Republicans (Barnier’s party) weren’t part of that block, while they benefited from it because the NFP candidates and the Ensemble candidates withdrew in their favor they refused to do it in favor of the NFP, even admiting they prefer the far right to the LFI, so they gained votes and seats because of an alliance against a party they prefer to a member of the alliance that withdrew candidates in their favor. Not only this but their voters were also the ones who least supported the Republican Front and their party had a pre election civil war where their leader decided to ally with the far right. So in an election where the winner was the rejection of the Far Right in the second round, Macron has decided to name a PM from the party closer to the far right, because they’re the most likely to not get censured by the far right (Le Pen and Bardella are celebrating this choice), the party that made left wing voters scared enough to vote for Macron’s party and the Republicans in the second round.

  15. Seems like a good compromise candidate between the centre and the right. The left of course won’t like it, but I think they are kind of overplaying their hand by claiming they ‘won’ the election even though they only actually got a quarter of the vote in the second round. Yes, they have a plurality in the parliament, but its far from a majority.

  16. The idea of nominating Barnier has never been brought up before and is a great idea, a really good pick.

    Next round is to see who will be holding key positions in his government, I sincerely hope it will open up as possible to all good-willing parties.

    Both extremes left and right already have indicated they won’t be participating in the government, Le Pen rather stay in the opposition and Mélenchon can keep agitating.

  17. It’s always the same old story. When forced to choose between the left or the far right, capital chooses the far right.

  18. Macron biggest ally for 5 years is the front national, it doesn’t work, yet he decides every time to ousb the boundaries to the right. So funny when we’ll have a war because of it.

  19. Interesting. No chance he’ll pass the budget but interesting that Macron gives a finger to the left like this 

  20. Macron outsmarted 80% of French voters. 
    This is a real tutorial on how to lose to both the right and left parties, stay in charge. 
    .

  21. What was the point of that election, god I hate that boyking Macron so much

  22. Once again the “Center” between left and far right chooses the Far right.

    All the bullshit about not wanting a Government with the “far-left” and after LFI says they wont ask for ministers in the new Government he still does this. Fk Macron

  25. Calling it now, the next election won’t be in 2027. Maybe 2026, but I think 2025. Someone’s going to kill Macron imo

  26. So macron made a pact with the far-right, so that they accept his candidate of choice, AND he made a pact with the far-right to not accept the left-wing candidate, even though they won the election…

  27. France stop, you’re making Belgium look good at forming governments.

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