Barnier will now have to survive a no-confidence vote in the National Assembly, France’s lower house of the parliament.
Two months after the second round of the snap parliamentary elections, President Emmanuel Macron has appointed Michel Barnier as France’s new prime minister.
The nomination comes after weeks of increasing pressure from all political groups to nominate a candidate.
Barnier will now have to survive a confidence vote in the National Assembly, France’s lower house of the parliament.
The current National Assembly is divided into three blocs: the left-wing coalition NFP (that won the most seats but fell short of an absolute majority), Macron’s centrist group and the far-right National Rally.
A loyal veteran of the recently renamed right-wing Republican Right party (LR), Barnier has had a long political career in France and the EU, having served twice as European Commissioner and, between 2016 and 2021, the chief EU negotiator for Brexit.
At 73, he is the oldest prime minister of the Fifth Republic at the time of his appointment.
His closest challenger, Pierre Bérégovoy, was 66 years old when he took office in 1992 under the presidency of François Mitterand. Gabriel Attal, Michel Barnier’s predecessor, was the youngest PM when he took office at 34 years old.
French politicians react — some calling for protests
National Rally’s Jordan Bardella reacted to the news out of the Élysée on X by saying that the party “acknowledged” Barnier’s appointment after a wait “unworthy of a great democracy”.
“We will ask for the major emergencies of the French people (such as) purchasing power, security and immigration, to finally be addressed, and we reserve all political means of action if this is not the case in the coming weeks,” the far-right party’s president said.
“The election has been stolen from the French people,” said Jean-Luc Melenchon, leader of French left’s largest party France Unbowed (LFI), speaking in the wake of Barnier’s appointment.
“We don’t believe for a moment that there will then be a majority in the National Assembly to accept such a denial of democracy”, Mélenchon continued.
The three-time presidential candidate also called for “the most powerful mobilisation possible” in the streets on 7 September, the day of the demonstration planned by LFI.
NFP coalition’s Greens told Euronews that, by appointing Barnier, Macron went against the voters by allowing the National Rally “to be the arbiter … and has turned his back on the millions of voters who, in the ballot box, made a historic republican barrage in France.”
“Obsessed with preserving his neoliberal record and his determination not to see the pension reform repealed, Emmanuel Macron has dismissed the New Popular Front, opting instead to align himself with the radicalised right,” the Greens said.
The Communist party also reacted negatively to the news of Barnier’s appointment, telling Euronews in a statement that he was “the right wing’s choice to continue the president’s policies.”
ADVERTISEMENT“Right up to the end, the president used every means at his disposal to circumvent the results of the ballot box,” party representative Fabien Roussel said.
Meanwhile, Macron’s outgoing PM Attal posted a thank-you note on X, saying “The bond we have is the most precious thing for me. Count on me to continue to weave it.”
He made no comments on Barnier’s appointment.
Can Barnier survive the vote?
In choosing Barnier, Macron might have inevitably strengthened the hand of the National Rally and given it the role of kingmaker, experts believe. But the left’s importance should not be dismissed if Barnier is to take on the hot seat of prime minister.
ADVERTISEMENT“Today, we have three major players in politics: Macron, Melenchon and Marine Le Pen. And there are two who are considered to be making a mess of things. It’s just an extra step that helps to give more credibility to the far-right,” Emmanuel Rivière, political scientist and polling expert, told Euronews.
If he survives a confidence vote, the new head of government will have to get straight to work: first, France must submit its proposals to slash public spending to the EU by 20 September, though that deadline can be extended until October.
To comply with EU rules, France would need to make cuts of at least €30 billion in 2025.
Then, a draft of the country’s budget for 2025 is due to be presented to Parliament on 1 October, at a time when France’s public finances are in dire straits.
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