Michel Barnier gets to the heart of the matter. For the first time, this Tuesday, October 1, the Prime Minister will face the deputies, before whom he will deliver his general policy declaration at 3 p.m. A speech which will allow us to see more clearly the intentions of the former European commissioner, deprived of a majority, threatened with censorship by the left and held at gunpoint by a National Rally whose support is essential to the survival of the government. Practical explanations.
What is the general policy statement?
The general policy declaration is the speech by which the Prime Minister sets out his political project and his program after the formation of his government. This speaking out is mentioned by the Constitution of the Fifth Republic, but it is not obligatory. “The Prime Minister, after deliberation of the Council of Ministers, commits before the National Assembly the responsibility of the government on its program or possibly on a declaration of general policy”, provides only the Basic Law, in its article 49. The declaration of general policy has, however, become, over the years, a republican custom, because the new Prime Ministers systematically agree to it upon their arrival at Matignon.
Who issues the general policy statement?
In the National Assembly, easy: it’s the Prime Minister. But in front of the Senate, it is a little less obvious. There “ruler”, indicates the government website, “wants that when the Prime Minister presents his general policy declaration before the National Assembly, it be read at the same time from the Senate platform by another member of the government”. Thus the Minister of the Economy, Bruno Le Maire, delivered simultaneously, at the Palais du Luxembourg, the speeches of Elisabeth Borne and Gabriel Attal.
In the protocol order, the former deputy for Eure was then number 2 in the government. A rank now occupied by the Minister of Justice, Didier Migaud, who could therefore be required to repeat Michel Barnier’s general policy declaration before the senators. This simultaneous political declaration does not prevent the Prime Minister from speaking later before the Senate. Elisabeth Borne and Gabriel Attal had, for example, done so, the latter the day after his declaration before the Assembly, his predecessor the same afternoon.
Should the Prime Minister submit to a vote of confidence during his general policy declaration?
No, it is not obligatory. Traditionally, Prime Ministers request a vote of confidence, which holds their government accountable and forces them to resign in the event of rejection. This was the case of Edouard Philippe and Jean Castex during Emmanuel Macron’s first five-year term, for example. But such a procedure is too risky if the Prime Minister does not have an absolute majority in the National Assembly. Elisabeth Borne and Gabriel Attal had therefore given up on their arrival in Matignon, like the socialist Michel Rocard in 1988. And Michel Barnier, who does not even have a relative majority, will do the same this Tuesday, his entourage confirmed in the day of Monday.
Update : this Monday, September 30 at 4:30 p.m., with the information that Michel Barnier will not seek a vote of confidence.
