French President Emmanuel Macron and his new prime minister, Gabriel Attal, yesterday worked to pull together a Cabinet, a day after Macron appointed the 34-year-old to breathe new life into his second mandate.
Attal has promised to be bold and fast to help the middle class weather the rising cost of living, signaling a desire by Macron to move beyond divisive reforms and improve his party’s chances in European Parliament elections in June.
Little has leaked on the formation of the new Cabinet, although Gerald Darmanin told French media that he was confident he would stay on as minister of the interior.
Photo: Reuters
French Minister of Finance Bruno le Maire, who has been in his job for seven years, also seemed keen to stay on and unveiled his plans for the whole year in a speech on Monday.
The reshuffle is likely to intensify the race in Macron’s camp to succeed him in the next presidential election in 2027, with former French prime minister Edouard Philippe, Darmanin and Le Maire all seen as potential candidates — alongside Attal.
It was unclear when the new government team would be appointed, with French Senate President Gerard Larcher telling TF1 TV that Attal told him it could be done this week.
Widespread public discontent over surging living costs and last year’s contested pension reform have seriously hit Macron’s ratings and his chances in the EU ballot, where his party trails badly behind Marine le Pen’s National Rally.
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