Macron Names Michel Barnier as French Prime Minister Amid Political Deadlock
TL/DR –
President Emmanuel Macron of France has appointed Michel Barnier, a veteran politician and the EU’s former Brexit negotiator, as the new prime minister to resolve the political stalemate following a snap parliamentary election. Macron’s centrist coalition lost a significant number of seats in the election, leaving no party with an absolute majority. Barnier, who is from the right-wing Republicans party, faces the task of pushing through reforms and a budget amidst pressure to reduce France’s deficit from the European Commission and bond markets.
France’s New Prime Minister: Ex-Brexit Negotiator Michel Barnier
After a snap election and over 50 days of a caretaker government, President Emmanuel Macron has assigned Michel Barnier, the EU’s former Brexit negotiator, as France’s new prime minister. Macron’s decision to hold a snap parliamentary election in June led to a political deadlock, with his centrist coalition losing numerous seats and no party gaining a complete majority.
While the New Popular Front, a left-wing coalition, came first, Macron rejected their request to form a government following objections from other parties. Macron’s centrist group and the far right are the two other significant bodies in the National Assembly.
Barnier, a member of the right-wing Republicans party (LR), has been virtually absent from French politics since failing to secure his party’s nomination for the presidency in 2022. The ex-foreign minister and EU commissioner now faces the daunting task of pushing reforms and the 2025 budget through a hung parliament whilst France faces pressure from the European Commission and bond markets to decrease its deficit.
In his new role, Barnier emphasized alleviating the “anger, the suffering, the feeling of abandonment, of injustice running through many of our cities, suburbs and rural areas”. The 73-year-old Barnier is the oldest prime minister in France’s modern political history, succeeding Gabriel Attal, the youngest.
He listed health care, security, employment, and tackling France’s excessive debt as his priorities and expressed the need for “respect, unity and appeasement”. Macron and his team hope that Barnier can build loose groupings of backers in parliament and that the far-right National Rally of three-time presidential candidate Marine Le Pen will not block Barnier’s appointment.
Political tension remains high, with left-wing leader Jean-Luc Melenchon branding Macron’s choice of Barnier as a “stolen election from the French”. Melenchon has called for public protests, and fellow left-winger Mathilde Panot has declared it an “unacceptable democratic coup”.
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