The French prime minister has announced his new government – the country’s fourth since the start of the year – in hopes his administration can ward off another no-confidence motion from the badly divided parliament.
François Bayrou’s government is a mix of old and new, including many familiar faces: former interior minister Gérald Darmanin has been appointed justice minister; Former Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne, a technocrat, has returned to the government as education secretary, while another former prime minister, Manuel Valls – who served under socialist President François Hollande, has been appointed foreign minister.
Jean-Noel Barrot will remain foreign secretary, while right-winger Bruno Ritaleau has been reappointed interior minister. Eric Lombard, a former banker, will lead the Economy Ministry, while Sébastien Lecornu will remain at the Defense Ministry and Rachida Dati as culture minister.
Many leading political figures are looking forward to the 2027 presidential elections and are reluctant to bet their prospects on a government that could collapse in a matter of weeks or remain dormant until new general elections are held next summer, Bayeru — first appointed by Emmanuel Macron for 10 days — has struggled to find people willing to join his government.
The previous prime minister, Michel Barnier, lasted only 90 days, when his administration was toppled by a vote of no confidence.
Bayrou, a centrist, promised to form a “national interest government” in the middle political ground, excluding Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally (RN) and far-left France Unbiased (LFI). Ultimately, Bayeru’s administration, like that of Barnier before him, leaned toward the conservative right. Macron’s government lost its parliamentary majority after calling snap elections in June following historic gains for the far right in European elections.
However, this move backfired and the French Assembly Nationale split into three almost equal groups – left, center and right – none of which has an absolute majority.
One of the government’s first tasks will be to prepare a 2025 budget bill and reduce France’s budget deficit, which is expected to reach 6% of GDP by the end of the year, below the level of GDP required by the EU. Well above 3%. Of member states.
Barnier put forward a budget bill in early December using a controversial constitutional clause called 49.3, but the law was dropped after his government lost a no-confidence vote.
In a televised interview on Thursday evening, Bayeru, leader of the centrist party Democratic Movement (MODEM), said he expected to present his government’s new budget by mid-February, adding that he had already held the “broadest possible negotiations”. do. He promised not to use the controversial constitutional Article 49.3 to push legislation through without debate unless they were “completely blocked”. He said he is not in favor of new taxes on businesses, but understands that the country’s growing public deficit must be addressed with spending cuts.
In an interview with BFMTV, Bayrou denied that Le Pen had any influence on his ministerial appointments, as claimed by former minister Xavier Bertrand.
The Socialist Party (PS) described the new government as one “supported by the far right”. PS general secretary Olivier Faure said he “could find no reason not to condemn” the government with a vote of no confidence.
“We are disappointed by the poverty of what is being proposed,” Faure said. “The Prime Minister needs to wake up and understand what the game is about.”
The appointment of Valls in particular is seen as a “provocation” to the left, but Bayru said: “His personality is a bit like a kamikaze. I like courageous personalities, who accept taking risks. He is that kind of person. For whom I have respect.”
The French Parliament is on recess until January 13. Bayru has said that the first Council of Ministers will be held on January 3 and he will announce his government’s program on January 14.
The LFI said it would table a motion of no confidence following Bayeru’s announcement, which the Assemblée Nationale would vote on within 48 hours. If this succeeds the government will fall again.
Macron spent Thursday and Friday in France’s poorest region, Mayotte, near Madagascar on the coast of south-eastern Africa, which was recently hit by the worst cyclone in 90 years, killing at least 35 people. and 2,500 others were injured, 78 seriously. He then traveled to Djibouti and Ethiopia and returned to Paris on Sunday with his new prime minister struggling to find a unanimous administration.
Macron declared a national day of mourning on Monday following the deaths and destruction caused by Cyclone Chido in Mayotte. The President and First Lady Brigitte Macron observed a minute of silence at the Elysee.
On Monday Bertrand, a veteran conservative, was appointed to the Justice Ministry, but said he was told the RN had vetoed his appointment. As a result, he said he had turned down other ministerial posts because he “refused to take part in the French government formed with the support of Marine Le Pen”.
“To be accepted under these terms would be to deny my values, my commitment and my fight,” he said. “Tackling extremism… is a mistake,” he said.
In an interview with Le Parisien on Friday, the LN leader, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, said: “François Bayrou will not survive the winter”.