Appointment of the NEW FRENCH Government

May 16th – Emmanuel Macron named a member of his outgoing administration as his new Prime Minister. Elisabeth Borne was successively Minister of Transport, Ecology and Employment during Macron’s first term in office.

The political class welcomed the appointment of a woman for the first time in 30 years.

The political class has almost unanimously welcomed the appointment of a woman to this position for the first time in 30 years. However, the right criticized this choice as a sign that Macron is taking a left turn as Elisabeth Borne is making no bones about her affinity with the socialist party. But the left is also displeased, seeing in her choice a sign that Macron intends to continue his pro-business policies, Borne being seen as a typical ambitious high civil servant who happens to serve a socialist Government. She also has implemented the opening up to competition of the rail market and the unemployment insurance reform it opposed as it is traditionally a left marker.

May 20th – As per the French rules after a presidential election, a (provisional) government was named.

The reelected President took even more time to appoint a new Government compared to the tradition.

The reelected President took even more time to appoint a new Government compared to the tradition, playing a kind of continuity with his previous presidency. Composed of 27 members, this new Government counts only a few new entrants and a couple of promotions. The most notable being:

• Bruno Le Maire, until now Minister of Economy and Finance, who is now No. 2 in the government with his previous portfolio remit extended to “industrial and digital sovereignty”;
• The Health Minister is the former junior minister in charge of the autonomy of the elderly reporting to the former Minister of Health. He is coming from the ranks of the socialist party who join the presidential majority in 2017;
• The newly appointed Minister of Education is an academic who until now was chairing the Museum of Migration. He has no political background nor experience in education policy but is known for his position supporting the anti-discrimination movement. He is marking a change of paradigm from his predecessor’s positions against the “woke “ movement.

Among the entrants, figures coming from the right dominate:

• The Foreign Affairs Minister is a former advisor to President Chirac;
• The minister for disabled people was the head of the group of LR lawmakers up until the day before his appointment;
• The minister for regional cohesion is a local elected official (LR), close to former Prime Minister Edouard Philippe.

There is no Minister for Digital Affairs for the moment. The position could well be filled after the legislative elections.

Apart for the Minister of Education, there were no real surprises in the names of the people appointed.

Apart for the Minister of Education, there were no real surprises in the names of the people appointed nor any major political repositioning. This government team embodies stability and continuity in terms of the political line followed.

This stability and continuity is heightened by the fact that the staffing of the offices of the ministers will remain the same, at least until after the legislative elections to be held in June.

Macron has gone down the path of choosing experts lacking in political stature […] limiting the risk that political competitors emerge.

Macron has gone down the path of choosing experts lacking in political stature to renew his government, ensuring in this manner that he will be able to continue making decisions on his own, limiting the risk that political competitors emerge. 

However, insofar as the composition of the government team is traditionally adjusted following the legislative elections, the possibility remains that changes may be made to reflect the result of the legislative elections.