AFPFrench President Emmanuel Macron has appointed Michel Barnier as prime minister, nearly two months after France’s political deadlock in early elections.
Barnier, 73, is the EU’s former chief Brexit negotiator who led negotiations with the British government from 2016 to 2019.
A veteran of the right-wing Republican Party (LR), he has had a long political career and held various senior positions within France and the EU.
He must now form a government that can survive a National Assembly divided into three political blocs, none of which can form an outright majority.
known in France as Mr BrexitMr Barnier will become France’s oldest prime minister since the founding of the Fifth Republic in 1958.
Three years ago, he tried to become the party’s candidate to run against President Macron for the French presidency, but failed. He said he wanted to limit and control immigration.
He will succeed Gabriel Attal, France’s youngest-ever prime minister, who was first appointed by President Macron in early 2024 and has served as caretaker prime minister since July.
After President Macron announced a “political truce” during the Paris Olympics, it took him 60 days to decide on his choice of prime minister.
But Mr Barnier will need all his political skills to deal with the situation in the coming weeks, with the centre-left Socialist Party already planning to challenge his appointment with a confidence vote.
AFPMr Macron’s term as president will last until 2027.
But the self-proclaimed “watchmaker” changed that when he called snap elections in June, placing his centrist position behind the left-wing New Popular Front.
President Macron has interviewed several potential candidates for prime minister, but his task is complicated by the need to select a candidate who can pass a so-called censure vote when he debuts in the National Assembly.
The Elysee Palace said that by appointing Mr Barnier, the president ensured that the prime minister and future government would provide the greatest possible stability and broadest unity.
The president stressed that Mr Barnier’s task was to form a unity government “that serves the country and the French people”.
Mr Barnier’s immediate challenge is steering France’s 2025 budget, which he must submit to parliament by October 1.
Gabriel Attal has started working on an interim budget this summer, but getting it passed by MPs will require all of Mr Barnier’s political skills.
His nomination has already caused dissatisfaction among the New Popular Front (NFP), whose own candidate for prime minister was rejected by the president.
Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader of the radical French Indomitable Party (LFI) – the largest of the four parties that make up the NFP – said the election was “stolen from the French people”.
He was not from the coalition that emerged first on July 7, but complained that the prime minister would be “a member of the last party to emerge,” referring to the Republicans.
“It’s basically a Macron-Le Pen government now,” Mélenchon said, referring to the leader of the far-right National Rally (RN).
He later called on people to join left-wing protests planned for Saturday against Mr Macron’s decision.
To pass a vote of confidence, Mr Barnier needs to convince 289 members of the 577-seat National Assembly to back his government.
Marine Le Pen made clear her party would not join his government, but said he at least seemed to meet the initial demands of the national rally as someone who “respects the different political forces”.
RN president Jordan Bardella, 28, said Mr Barnier would be judged on his words, actions and his decisions on France’s next budget, which must be submitted by October 1 parliament.
He pointed out that the cost of living, security and immigration are major emergencies facing the French people, adding that “if this is not the case in the coming weeks, we will reserve all means of political action”.
Getty ImagesMr Barnier is likely to attract support from the president’s centrist coalition. National Assembly Speaker Yaël Braun-Pivet, a Macron ally, congratulated the nominee and said lawmakers must now play their part fully: “Our mission compels us to do so. “
The former Brexit negotiator was not a potential candidate until Wednesday afternoon.
Two other experienced politicians had previously been considered the most likely candidates: former Socialist Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve and Republican regional leader Xavier Bertrand. But it soon became apparent that neither would survive a vote of confidence.
This was Macron’s explanation for rejecting left-wing candidate Lucie Castets.
The president has been widely criticized for sparking France’s political crisis.
A recent poll showed that 51% of French voters believe the president should resign.
It’s unlikely, but Édouard Philippe, whom Macron selected as his first prime minister in 2017, has now been nominated for the next presidential election three years in advance.
