Europe

Michel Barnier, former EU chief Brexit negotiator, named new French prime minister

French president has been seeking to form new government for two months after losing legislative vote

Michel Barnier led the EU’s talks with the UK over its exit from the union after the Brexit vote. Prior to that, the conservative politician held roles in various French governments and was also an EU Commissioner. Photograph: Alan Betson
Sarah White
Thu Sept 05 2024 - 12:56

French president Emmanuel Macron has appointed Michel Barnier, the European Union’s former Brexit negotiator, as his new prime minister, after weeks of drawn-out talks following an inconclusive snap election.

The Élysée Palace said Mr Barnier (73) had been “tasked with forming a unifying government to serve the country and the French”.

Mr Barnier is a veteran of France’s conservative Les Républicains (LR), a party Mr Macron has wooed to find a candidate who can command majority support in the National Assembly and who will not seek to undo the president’s past pro-business reforms.

Although Mr Barnier comes from a rival centre-right party, Mr Macron has chosen a premier with significant standing on the European stage, having served as France’s EU commissioner in the high-profile financial services portfolio for four years, then later as Brussels’ negotiator with London on Brexit.

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Pressure had been building for Mr Macron to name a prime minister two months after a snap election that ended up weakening him, with his own centrist camp losing seats, while other forces on the right and left fell short of an outright majority. The looming deadline for the start of 2025 budget discussions in parliament next month — particularly urgent given the poor state of France’s public finances — had added to the need to break the deadlock.

Mr Barnier will replace Gabriel Attal, a former Macron ally appointed last January in a reshuffle, who became France’s youngest-ever prime minister at 34. But relations between Mr Attal and Mr Macron have soured since the president called the snap election — a surprise decision that many in his own camp criticised as a bad move.

As president, Mr Macron appoints the prime minister and he and Mr Barnier will now discuss cabinet appointments.

Parliament is not required to approve Mr Barnier’s appointment, but opposition parties in the lower house can table no-confidence motions to topple a government. The new prime minister will therefore need cross-party support in the hung parliament.

That means Mr Macron has not yet resolved the political crisis triggered by the snap election, as any of Mr Barnier’s legislative moves could prompt a backlash from one group or another. It also puts Mr Macron in the position of needing backing from the far-right Rassemblement National (RN) of Marine Le Pen if the Barnier government is to endure, given that the choice of Mr Barnier marks a rightward tilt that leftwing parties in France oppose.

During the snap vote, which came after a surge by the far right in European elections, parties on the right and left including politicians from Mr Macron’s party had worked together tactically in as many constituencies as possible to block RN candidates from winning. The result was that a leftwing alliance won the largest number of seats, but was still short of a majority, followed by Mr Macron’s centrist supporters and allies, while the far-right RN came third but emerged as the largest single political party.

- Financial Times Limited