There have been no big signings either to the left or to the right, as expected after the strong setback of Macron’s party in the legislative
The Elysée Palace announced this Monday through a statement the composition of the new French Government. The reshuffle of the Executive comes two weeks after the legislative elections in June, in which President Emmanuel Macron’s party and his allies lost an absolute majority in the National Assembly, the lower house of the French Parliament. Macron has convened a Council of Ministers this afternoon.
Élisabeth Borne, appointed Prime Minister by Macron in May after the presidential elections in April, will continue to head the Executive. Borne, a technocrat, is due to deliver her general policy speech to the National Assembly on Wednesday. Macron, who has a relative majority in the National Assembly, had said a few days ago that he wanted “a government of action.” The new Executive, in which male-female parity is respected, is made up of 31 ministers and 10 secretaries of state. The changes have finally been minimal. There have been no big signings either to the left or to the right, as expected after the strong setback of Macron’s party in the legislative elections.
There will be no coalition government, given the refusal of the opposition to enter the Executive. Macron will therefore be forced to agree on a timely basis with other parties to pass laws and carry out reforms. Some government heavyweights will continue in the same positions, as is the case of Gérald Darmain (Interior and Overseas), Bruno Le Maire (Economy), Éric Dupond-Moretti (Justice) and Catherine Colonna (Foreign Affairs), as well as the person in charge of Education, Pap Ndiaye, who had been appointed to the post in May.
A necessary makeover
A remodeling of the Government was necessary after the legislative elections to replace three members of the Government who had not won a seat in the National Assembly. Ministers Amélie de Montchalin (Ecological Transition) and Brigitte Bourguignon (Health) and the Secretary of State for the Sea, Justine Bénin, leave the Executive as they do not have the support of the polls. They also had to find a replacement for the overseas minister, Yaël Braun-Pivet, who has been elected president of the National Assembly, the first woman to hold this position.
Another outstanding departure is that of Damien Abad, Minister of Solidarity. Abad, who comes from the right and had been appointed to that post in May, has been accused by several women of rape and sexual assault, something he denies. Abad does not remain unemployed, however, since he is a deputy of the National Assembly. The controversial minister will be replaced by Jean-Christophe Combe, former director general of the French Red Cross.
Instead, Chrysoula Zacharopoulou, French Secretary of State for Development, remains in the Executive. Zacharopoulou, who is a gynecologist by profession, has been accused by two women of rape and by a third “gynecological violence” for events that allegedly occurred during medical examinations years ago in her office.
The former Minister of Health, Oliver Véran, will be the new government spokesman. Véran, who was until now deputy minister in charge of relations with Parliament, has a lot of experience in communication. When he was in charge of the Ministry of Health, he promptly informed the French about the evolution of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Olivia Grégoire leaves the position of Government spokesperson to become Deputy Minister of Small and Medium Enterprises, a position dependent on Bercy, the Ministry of Economy. The centrist Franck Riester, until now Deputy Minister of Foreign Trade, will be the new person in charge of relations with Parliament, replacing Véran.
The former Secretary of State for European Affairs, Clément Beaune, will be the new Minister of Transport. Beaune will have a hectic debut in his new position with the strikes announced this month at French airports and at the SCNF, the French RENFE. Laurence Boone, an economist and former adviser to François Hollande, will be the new head of Europe, replacing Beaune.
Among the new faces of the French Government, the appointments of the emergency doctor François Braun as Minister of Health and Christophe Béchu, a politician close to former Prime Minister Édouard Philippe, who will head the Ministry of Ecological Transition and Cohesion of the Territories, stand out.
It also highlights the return to the Government of Marlène Schiappa, who will be in charge of the Social and Solidarity Economy and Associative Life and will report directly to Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne. During Macron’s first term, Schiappa, a very media figure, was Deputy Minister of Citizenship and Secretary of State for Equality between Women and Men.
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