Here, there are not three rings but there is a bell, ten minutes before the start of the session. There was excitement before that of the day. It must be said that the poster was enticing: “The incredible Gabriel Attal alone in the deputies’ pit. »
For the first time since the introduction of questions to the government (QAG, for short) in the National Assembly, almost fifty years ago, these were transformed into questions to the Prime Minister. The idea is to restore verve to a format which has faded a little over the years… and the language of wood.
The criticism is already in place in the stands when the main actor of the day, Gabriel Attal, arrives in an almost empty hemicycle, two minutes from the start. Three or four Renaissance deputies applaud wildly, like parents before their little one’s performance at the end of year show. The poster, however, has another standard: forty-five minutes, ten questions, one per group. Each MP can enjoy their two minutes of speaking time as they wish (in one go, or in pieces). The Prime Minister, as tradition dictates, does not have a timer.
We quickly became disillusioned
Very quickly, the criticism was disillusioned. Because to make good “QAG”, it takes two. If the main role displayed the master side of himself and the space that we know so well, the deputies generally chose to act as if nothing had happened. This Wednesday we heard the same questions, asked in the same way as usual, on often technical subjects. We’re used to the majority’s questions being soft.
But the opposition also generally disappointed: LR on the situation of Atos, Liot on integration, the communists and the socialists on purchasing power… Questions of general interest but what added value is there in asking them to the Prime Minister rather than the responsible ministers? Most of the time, MPs also chose very long questions, with little or no follow-up. Let’s say it: this staging lacks life.
His greatest hits
So much so that Gabriel Attal did not have to force his charisma to obtain the applause of the majority. He replayed his greatest hits: the classic and effective “I announced it in my general policy declaration”; the somewhat repetitive “The French Who Work”; the sulphurous “I have no taboos”; the serious “I keep my commitments”. And, of course, the fan service appreciated by the Macronist benches: the famous “It’s thanks to this majority”. All that was missing was “I assume my responsibilities”, but our attention wavered a little towards the end.
The only ones to have understood the interest of the format are the rebels. A short (32 seconds), simple but very political question on the unemployment insurance reform: “In the hope that the question session for the Prime Minister will be, unlike the question session for the government, a real answer session I would ask members of Parliament two direct questions. In your opinion, is there a link between unemployment compensation and the level of unemployment itself? Are there enough unfilled long-term jobs for the number of job seekers? »
Iron grip
And an 88-second cue who comes to try to break thee satisfaction of Gabriel Attal on the drop in unemployment since 2017 and entrepreneurs who cannot find hire. It has some allure, the political irony is interesting. But, always in search of maximum political effectiveness, the rebels have chosen to combine a well-felt issue with their relentless efforts for the rehabilitation of perpetrators of domestic violence in politics. They had entrusted the question to the deputy from the North, Adrien Quatennens.
Nice try, but chasing two hares at once you catch none. And Gabriel Attal, who in the chosen format always has the last word, was also able to do his number: noting that Adrien Quatennens had not answered the question he had asked him on the reasons for the drop of unemployment, “it is therefore that you recognize that it is the action of this majority which has enabled the historic drop in unemployment! It’s never too late to change your mind.”
The dice are loaded
We had analyzed Gabriel Attal’s only one on stage as a fairly courageous risk-taking: it was nothing of the sort. Beyond bringing out his usual hits – but after all, he is consistent in defending his policy – the fact that the Prime Minister has no time limit for his answers totally unbalances the room. How can we justify that the host of Matignon can have, if he wishes, the last word all the time when he is the only one who will speak every time? With this data, it is not surprising that most groups did not take any risks.
It’s like all musical comedies or somewhat mythical boulevard plays: it’s difficult to move, the “QAGs”. Whatever happened after the first of these five exceptional performances planned, we did not say to ourselves that we had found the martingale to renew the genre. A respected critic from the press galleries of the Assembly treacherously whispered at the exit: “In five weeks he will be all alone with his files in front of three shorn men and one haired man. » Not impossible, this Wednesday there was really no crowd. It was probably a sign: you should always check the line in front of the theater before entering.