Macron appoints Brexit negotiator as French prime minister | El Diario Vasco

French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday appointed right-wing European Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier as France’s new prime minister, with the task of forming a “unity government,” the presidency announced in a statement.

Macron has triggered a political crisis in France by bringing forward legislative elections scheduled for 2027 in June, leaving the National Assembly (lower house) with three main blocs, all far from an absolute majority.

The left was surprised by an insufficient victory when all the polls pointed to a triumph of the extreme right. Jean-Luc Melenchon, leader of La France Insoumise, said yesterday that the appointment of Barnier shows that the result of the elections had been stolen by Macron.