French President Emmanuel Macron has appointed former European Commissioner and ex-French Foreign Minister Michel Barnier as the country’s new prime minister, the presidential administration reported.
“He [the president] instructed him to form a unity government that will serve the country and the French people,” the press service said in a statement. According to it, the decision on the appointment was made after lengthy consultations, during which “the president made sure that the prime minister and the future government would have all the conditions for maximum stability and the opportunity to unite” as many political forces as possible.
Macron is seeking to consolidate political forces so as to avoid a vote of no confidence in the new cabinet. And while deputies from the left-wing New Popular Front coalition are still threatening to block any candidate other than their proposed Lucie Castets, the largest single-party group, the Rassemblement Nationale, and its supporting Republicans, led by Eric Ciotti, have not yet given Michel Barnier their endorsement. A number of National Rally deputies said they were not ready to just cast Barnier aside by voting blindly against him, wanting to hear out his political platform first.
Barnier will succeed Gabriel Attal, 35, who was appointed in January 2024, becoming the youngest prime minister in French history.
Source: TASS
