After 56 days, the saga has just come to an end. Michel Barnier, former minister of Jacques Chirac and Nicolas Sarkozy and former European Commissioner, was entrusted, this Thursday, September 5, with the responsibility of appointing a new government by Emmanuel Macron.
56 days after the second round of the legislative elections, Emmanuel Macron finally has his new Prime Minister. Michel Barnier, whose name had been circulating in recent hours, was appointed Prime Minister this Thursday at midday. The epilogue after a week where several names had emerged before losing their place as favorite, from Thierry Beaudet to Xavier Bertrand via Bernard Cazeneuve. According to The ParisianMichel Barnier and the president met on Wednesday evening to discuss his appointment and the new occupant of Matignon was again received at the Elysée a few minutes before the official announcement. At 73, the oldest Prime Minister of the Ve République thus succeeds Gabriel Attal, 35, who was the youngest at Matignon. And who will have led the longest resigning government in the history of the Fifth Republic.e Republic.
An old hand in French and European politics, Michel Barnier, whose name began to circulate at the beginning of the summer, was a minister for the first time in 1993, then three times under the presidencies of Jacques Chirac and Nicolas Sarkozy. He notably held the posts of Minister of Agriculture and Minister of Foreign Affairs.
He has also served twice as a European Commissioner, and was the European Union’s chief Brexit negotiator between 2016 and 2021. He briefly reappeared in French politics in 2021 as a candidate in the primary of his party, Les Républicains (LR), for the 2022 presidential election. He had been eliminated in the 1is round, coming third with 23.93% of the vote. For the second round, he will support Valérie Pécresse against Éric Ciotti, while his program included a “moratorium” on immigration.
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“Highly appreciated by right-wing MPs”
According to a resigning minister, the Élysée had spoken with him on Wednesday. “He is very popular with right-wing MPs without it being an irritant on the left,” she said.[…]
- challenges.fr
