Having just been appointed to Matignon, where he promised “changes and ruptures”, the new Prime Minister Michel Barnier must now set about forming a government capable of demonstrating its ability to unite and free itself from Emmanuel Macron.
And now, “let’s get to work”. The cliché that concludes all speeches on the transfer of power had the appearance of a challenge for Michel Barnier on Thursday in the courtyard of Matignon.
Tasked by the President of the Republic with “forming a unifying government in the service of the country”, the 73-year-old from Savoy already knows he is on borrowed time and will have to find the right balances to avoid falling to the first motion of censure.
Without waiting, he made numerous phone calls even before taking office, according to his entourage: Edouard Philippe, François Bayrou, Laurent Wauquiez, but also Nicolas Sarkozy, as well as the President of the National Assembly Yaël Braun-Pivet and that of the Senate Gérard Larcher.
From Friday morning, he will receive the leaders of his own party, Les Républicains (LR), to examine the conditions for participation in his future team.
“Certain left-wing figures” were also contacted and other discussions were to follow, including with France Insoumise and the National Rally, because “he wants to bring everyone together and respect them.”
The new Prime Minister himself offered a few hints in his first speech: “We will need to listen a lot” and “respect for all the political forces that are represented” in Parliament. Because from his point of view “sectarianism is a sign of weakness, when you are sectarian it is because you are not sure of your ideas”.
His own remain to be specified. He has just assured that “school will remain the government’s priority”, as well as other projects including “access to public services”, “daily security”, “controlling immigration”, or even work and purchasing power.
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A roadmap that is a priori consensual, even if Mr. Barnier promised “changes and ruptures” and foreshadowed difficult choices with the stated desire to “tell the truth” about “financial and ecological debt.”
– “Engaging in dialogue” –
It remains to be seen who will agree to come on board. Not the RN, which “will not participate” in the Barnier government but has “set conditions”, said Marine Le Pen, whose 126 deputies hold the key to a possible censure.
Not the left either, who from Jean-Luc Mélenchon to Carole Delga immediately castigated this “Prime Minister appointed with the permission of the RN” and de facto “in the hands of the far-right parliamentary groups”. Which reinforces LFI in its impeachment process initiated against Emmanuel Macron, coupled with calls to demonstrate in several cities on Saturday.
So there remain the members of the former majority, who will be “many to help” the new Prime Minister, according to one of his predecessors Edouard Philippe. Not really ideal, however, to embody the announced “ruptures”.
Michel Barnier, still a member of the Republicans (LR), can also count on his political family. “He is someone from our country, we will be able to engage in dialogue with him easily,” rejoices the secretary general of the right-wing party, Annie Genevard.
The deputies of the centrist Liot group (Liberties, Independents, Overseas, Territories) also show goodwill towards this “politician with strong experience” who “partly corresponds to the profile” they wanted, provided that “the composition of the future government and (its) orientations mark a change of methods and direction”.
The new tenant of Matignon has his own criteria. “He wants strong, competent and efficient ministers,” his entourage indicates, and “he will have the freedom” to choose them. Just like for his chief of staff, an eminently strategic position: “It will be Mr. Barnier alone and himself who will decide.”
As if to better mark his distance from the head of state, “neither meeting nor dinner” was planned for Thursday evening between the two men. However, they will have to resume talks quickly to validate the government casting and close a high-risk 2025 budget. And invent an unprecedented relationship, not of cohabitation but of “demanding coexistence”, according to the president’s entourage.
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