Following his appointment on Tuesday, the new tenant of Matignon intensified his discussions with the head of state about the future government casting, meeting him three times in 24 hours at the Élysée.The first names of the Attal government, full ministers, could be announced this Thursday.Follow the latest information.
Any first names this Thursday? Appointed Tuesday in place of Élisabeth Borne, Gabriel Attal, who became the youngest Prime Minister in the history of the Fifth Republic, must now form his government. The new tenant of Matignon met with Emmanuel Macron at the Élysée on Wednesday evening around a working dinner, like the day before and like at lunch, to outline the contours of the future government, which the two men would like to reduce.
According to our information, the option favored by the executive couple would be to first announce the full ministers, before subsequently appointing the secretaries of state. At the earliest, a new government could be announced Thursday afternoon, according to the presidential entourage. “Logic would want a Council of Ministers before the end of the week, but I don’t know if they are going fast enough for that,” noted a government source to AFP.
Read also
Reshuffle: who could enter, leave or stay in the future government?
Full-time ministers could be between 12 and 16, their current number, with total parity between men and women, which complicates the situation given the over-representation of men among the prospective ministers. Having become at 34 the youngest Prime Minister in the history of the Republic, the short-lived Minister of National Education will compose his team under the sign of “rearmament” and some “regeneration” desired by Emmanuel Macron.
A REHABILITATION TODAY?
From TF1 and LCI, several sources confirm that the objective of Emmanuel Macron and Gabriel Attal is to appoint between 10 and 15 ministers this Thursday, before designating the rest of the government later during a second wave of appointments. A Council of Ministers could be organized as early as Friday afternoon with the new ministers.
A VOTE OF CONFIDENCE, “THE LEAST OF THINGS”
“He has been minister under Macron for six years. The results of this government, for which he is accountable, are catastrophic: a smicardisation of France and the fortunes of the richest are exploding”, denounces on franceinfo the national secretary of the PCF and deputy from the North , Fabien Roussel. According to him, the new Prime Minister must submit to a vote of confidence in Parliament. “It’s the least we can do,” he says. Before launching “a challenge” to the short-lived Minister of Education: “that he undertakes to no longer use 49.3.” “Politics is about finding compromises in dialogue,” he concluded.
MANUEL BOMPARD INSISTS ON VOTE OF CONFIDENCE
Gabriel Attal must “come before the National Assembly to ask for a vote of confidence”, as “in any parliamentary democracy”, judges the coordinator of France Insoumise, Manuel Bompard, on Public Senate. According to the MP, such a vote would make it possible to determine “who is in the majority and who is in the opposition.” Furthermore, without this vote, he believes that his group will not be able to meet the new Prime Minister.
“PUT SAND IN ÉDOUARD PHILIPPE’S SHOES”
“I don’t know what Emmanuel Macron’s tactical foundation is behind this appointment. I have the feeling that it’s more about cutting croupiers or putting sand in the shoes of Edouard Philippe, Gérald Darmanin or all those who could claim to succeed Emmanuel Macron”, estimates Marion Maréchal, the vice-president of Reconquête and head of the list for the European elections, guest of Adrien Gindre on Thursday in “Bonjour, la Matinale TF1”. “Beyond these political subjects, what interests me is that what will be the vision and the reforms carried out by this Prime Minister.”
GABRIEL ATTAL “MAYBE YOUNG, BUT NOT NEW”
“I am not sure that age is the central subject. Age is not the criterion, I see a real divergence of vision with Gabriel Attal”, affirms Marion Maréchal, the vice-president of Reconquête and head of list for the European elections, guest on Thursday by Adrien Gindre in “Bonjour, la Matinale TF1”. “He may be young, but he is not new. (…) He is responsible for the balance sheet of this government,” she added, referring to his political CV. “From this point of view, age cannot be a criterion for rapprochement.”
A NEW EXPECTED MOVE FOR GABRIEL ATTAL
In parallel with these delicate arbitrations, the new Prime Minister, Gabriel Attal, who had dinner with President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday evening, should make a third “thematic” trip in three days on Thursday in his new costume, according to those close to the short-lived Minister of Education.
On Wednesday, he went to the Ermont-Eaubonne police station, in Val-d’Oise, where he recalled the “absolute effort” expected by the French for their security. The new Prime Minister was accompanied by the Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin. He “is assured of staying in Beauvau as he wished” after having “had an exchange with the president who reiterated his confidence in him”, assures a close source.
WE TAKE STOCK
A new government is expected within the next few hours, following the appointment of Gabriel Attal at the Hôtel de Matignon. While some ministers are expected to keep their positions, others are expected to leave. New personalities could also enter.
GABRIEL ATTAL, “A BOLD CHOICE” FOR ÉDOUARD PHILIPPE
The appointment of Gabriel Attal as Prime Minister is “a bold choice”, said his predecessor Édouard Philippe, invited on Wednesday to speak at an event organized by Amundi, the largest European asset manager. “For my part, I had pleaded for the maintenance of the Prime Minister (Elisabeth Borne, editor’s note) at least until the European deadlines, based on the idea that it is difficult to change Prime Minister if you do not change neither politics nor majority,” he explained.
TWO-STAGE REHABILITATION
According to corroborating sources at TF1-LCI, the preferred hypothesis at the top of the State is a government appointment in two stages, with a first wave of names from this Thursday.
Info TF1/LCI: towards a two-stage reshuffleSource : TF1 Info
Gérald Darmanin and Bruno Le Maire, heavyweights who would have had difficulty with the appointment of young Attal to Matignon, are given to remain in Beauvau and Bercy, as well as Éric Dupond-Moretti to Justice and Sébastien Lecornu to the Armed Forces.
The Minister of Solidarity Aurore Bergé could be promoted to National Education, unless the position goes to former minister Amélie de Montchalin or to Amélie Oudéa-Castéra who would also keep Sports. This Education portfolio will be closely examined since Gabriel Attal, its short-lived holder, promised to take “the cause of the school” with him at Matignon.
Speculation is also rife about those who could leave the ship, such as several ministers from the left wing of Macronia who had expressed their disagreement with the immigration law. The Minister of Labor, Olivier Dussopt, who awaits his judgment on January 17 in a favoritism case, would also be outgoing.