Centrist leader François Bayrou has become France’s latest prime minister, chosen by President Emmanuel Macron in a bid to end months of political turmoil.
Bayrou, a 73-year-old mayor from the south-west who leads the MoDem party, said he was fully aware of the “Himalayan” task facing France, and he vowed to “hide nothing, neglect nothing and leave nothing aside”.
He is seen by Macron’s entourage as a potential consensus candidate and his task will be to avoid the fate of his predecessor.
Ex-Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier was ousted by MPs nine days ago and welcomed Bayrou to the prime minister’s residence on Friday.
Barnier was voted out over a budget aimed at cutting France’s budget deficit, which is set to hit 6.1% of economic output (GDP) this year. Bayrou said the deficit and public debt were a moral as well as a financial problem – because “passing it on to one’s children is a terrible thing to do”.
President Macron has vowed to remain in office until his second term ends in 2027, despite Barnier’s downfall last week.
He cut short a trip to Poland on Thursday and had been expected to name his new prime minister on Thursday night, but postponed his announcement until Friday.
He then met Bayrou at the Elysée Palace and a final decision was made hours later. But in an indication of the fraught nature of the talks, Le Monde newspaper suggested that Macron had preferred another ally, Roland Lescure, but changed his mind when Bayrou threatened to withdraw his party’s support.
Macron is half-way through his second term as president and Bayrou will be his fourth prime minister this year.
French politics has been deadlocked ever since Macron called snap parliamentary elections during the summer and an opinion poll for BFMTV on Thursday suggested 61% of French voters were worried by the political situation.
Although a succession of allies lined up to praise Bayrou’s appointment, Socialist regional leader Carole Delga said the whole process had become a “bad movie”. Far-left France Unbowed (LFI) leader Manuel Bompard complained of a “pathetic spectacle”.
The centre-left Socialists said they were ready to talk to Bayrou but would not take part in his government. Leader Olivier Faure said because Macron had chosen someone “from his own camp”, the Socialists would remain in opposition.
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