The British have not forgotten him. Michel Barnier returns to the political spotlight this Thursday, September 5, when Emmanuel Macron appointed him Prime Minister after lengthy consultations.
A singular choice, while Xavier Bertrand and Bernard Cazeneuve seemed to be holding the rope. But from the other side of the Channel, this decision mainly reopens the old wounds of Brexit.
Indeed, the Republican Party member was the chief negotiator of the agreements between the United Kingdom and the European Union when the islands decided to politically separate from the Continent. Something the British have not forgotten.
“Guess who’s back!” was the headline in the Daily Mail on Thursday, making fun of the “smashing return” of the “oldest Prime Minister in the history of France”.
For its part, the more serious Times underlines his role as a “courteous and tough negotiator”, but believes that in France “he is remembered as a gentle character”, even “emolient”, which can be translated as soft.
“An EU fanatic”
The current British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, has not yet sent his best wishes to his French counterpart. One of his opponents, Nigel Farage, for his part, highlights the arrival at Matignon of an “EU fanatic who will suit the sold-out Prime Minister Keir Starmer”.
British diplomats have also told the tabloid The Sun of their enmity towards this new head of government. According to them, Michel Barnier is “far from being Great Britain’s soul mate”. The daily newspaper notes mainly his “arrogance”, calling the French Prime Minister a “cocky”.
- BFMTV.com
