A team of 35 ministers. François Bayrou's government was named late Monday afternoon. It has four ministers of state: Élisabeth Borne, Minister of National Education, Higher Education and Research; Manuel Valls, Minister of Overseas Territories; Gérald Darmanin, Minister of Justice; and Bruno Retailleau, Minister of the Interior. The executive is also made up of ten full ministers and 21 delegate ministers.
No suspension of pension reform. Strong demand from the left during discussions with François Bayrou in recent days, the suspension of the 2023 pension reform is not on the program, warned the Prime Minister. “No, I won’t do that. What world do they live in? Do they know that France is observed, scrutinized by what we call “rating agencies,” and if (their) ratings are not good, then interest rates explode? », justified the Prime Minister on BFMTV. “There are all possible compromises. If it exists, I am ready,” added François Bayrou, who also said he was “ready” to reduce the discussion period from nine “to six months”.
Tension around the non-appointment of Xavier Bertrand. The president of Les Républicains (LR) of the Hauts-de-France region, who wanted to become Minister of Justice, says he was pushed aside under the influence of the National Rally. A version refuted by François Bayrou Monday evening on BFM TV. “It is not true that any influence whatsoever was exerted on me,” declared the Prime Minister. “Xavier Bertrand proposed an approach that I found violent at the Ministry of Justice”, an “approach” which was “not mine” because “the Ministry of Justice is a ministry of pacification” and “ of fairness,” he said.
The support of LR deputies for the government will be “very demanding”. The leader of the Les Républicains deputies, Laurent Wauquiez, insisted on Monday in front of his group that support for François Bayrou's government would not be unconditional and that it could be “withdrawn” depending on the course set. “We will take stock regularly to judge whether the country's recovery course is clear. We are not stopping ourselves from withdrawing our support,” he said, according to participants. “Our support can only be very demanding. Our votes will be decided text by text,” he stressed.
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