French President Emmanuel Macron appointed former EU negotiator Michel Barnier as prime minister on Thursday, about 60 days after legislative elections.
At 73 years old, Barnier sets a record as the oldest prime minister in the history of the Fifth Republic, with a political career spanning 51 years, according to the French-language Radio Monte Carlo International.
With this appointment, France moves from the youngest prime minister in the history of the Fifth Republic, Gabriel Attal, to the oldest.
Who is he?
Barnier is a centre-right politician, a member of the Les Républicains (LR) party and a former minister under François Mitterrand, Jacques Chirac and Nicolas Sarkozy.
Barnier was the main Brexit negotiator and had tried to run for president in the 2022 election, but was disqualified in the Republicans’ primary, where he came third.
Born on January 9, 1951, in La Tronche (Isère), Barnier has a long career that began in 1973 as a general counsellor in the Savoie department.
At that time, Valéry Giscard d’Estaing was president and Jacques Chirac was prime minister.
Barnier did not attend France’s National School of Administration, the institution from which many of the country’s leaders graduated, but he made history when, at the age of 27, he became the youngest member of parliament elected to the French National Assembly.
He married Isabel Altmaier, a lawyer, in 1982, and they have three children.
Diverse political career
Barnier entered the French Parliament in 1978 as a member of the National Assembly for the Savoie region, becoming the Assembly’s youngest member at the age of 27, and remained in office until 1993.
He held several important positions at the end of the last century, most notably President of the General Council of the Savoie Department (1982-1999), Senator (1995, 1997-1999), Minister of the Environment under President François Mitterrand (1993-1995), Minister Delegate for European Affairs under President Jacques Chirac (1995-1997), Minister of Foreign Affairs (2004-2005), and finally Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries under President Nicolas Sarkozy (2007-2009).
Among his notable achievements is the organisation of the Winter Olympic Games in Albertville, in 1992, thanks to his role as President of the General Council of the Savoie Department.
His positions on immigration
Barnier’s critics criticize him for two main positions on two controversial issues: immigration and the LGBT+ community.
During his campaign for the Republicans’ primary in 2021, Barnier proposed holding a referendum on immigration if he came to power, according to Le Monde.
In May 2023, he expressed his desire for France to be able to free itself from European restrictions on immigration, calling for constitutional protection to enable measures not currently permitted by European legislation, according to the Monte Carlo report.
He is also known for voting against decriminalizing homosexuality, according to his critic Mélenchon.
Brussels’ recognition…and failure in the primaries
Barnier gained wide recognition in Brussels, where he served as European Commissioner for Regional Policy (1999-2004), and then became a Member of the European Parliament, in 2009, after heading the list of the Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) party.
After leaving the government headed by François Fillon (2007-2012), where he was a minister, Barnier took up the position of European Commissioner for the Internal Market and Services, a position he held for 11 years.
In 2016, he became the chief Brexit negotiator, a position he held until 31 March 2021.
In Brussels, Barnier was respected and known for his ability to achieve consensus, patience and determination, according to Monte Carlo.
In 2021, he ran unsuccessfully for the Republican presidential nomination in the 2022 election.
Appointment to Matignon.. Opposing positions
Barnier’s appointment on Thursday was not unprecedented for him, as he was invited to the post of prime minister in 2020, but declined due to a condition imposed by President Macron that he leave the Republicans party, according to Le Monde.
Barnier’s appointment angered the left, which was demanding that he head the government.
Like its other allies in the New Popular Front, the Socialist bloc in the National Assembly announced that it would not grant Barnier a vote of confidence because he “has neither political nor republican legitimacy,” according to what was reported by Agence France-Presse.
“We are entering a systemic crisis,” Socialist leader Olivier Faure wrote on the Axe platform, denouncing the “denial of democracy reaching its peak” as Barnier’s right-wing Republicans party came in fourth in the legislative elections.
For his part, the leader of the radical left, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, said: “The elections were stolen from the French,” stressing that “this figure is the closest to the positions” of the far-right National Rally.
Macron seems to be counting on the National Rally, led by former presidential candidate Marine Le Pen, to refrain from ousting Barnier if he is to be put on a vote of no confidence.
“We will wait to hear Barnier’s general policy speech” before deciding whether to give him a vote of confidence, Le Pen said.
National Rally leader Jordan Bardella said Barnier would be judged “on the evidence” when he addresses parliament.
