PARIS (Reuters) – The finalization of the next government was the main activity of Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne on Tuesday, who met the deputies of the majority, of which she is now the leader, before having lunch with Emmanuel Macron.
The one who has never been elected but who is presenting her candidacy for the legislative elections of June 12 and 19 in Calvados was briefly invited to the weekly meeting of the deputies of the majority.
“The group presidents praised her qualities and she said a word about her willingness to work together and mobilization,” reported a deputy.
Elisabeth Borne will need the support of parliamentarians from the legislative elections, where the opposition hopes to carve out the lion’s share, to carry out the reforms promised by Emmanuel Macron. In particular, the acceleration of the ecological transition and the controversial pension reform are on the table.
To do this, the new government expected in the coming days should take the form of a tight team “on strong themes”, which will eventually be completed after the legislative elections, according to government sources. Elisabeth Borne’s general policy speech will take place following the election, the same sources say.
The composition of the next government was on the lunch menu, reported by the Elysée, between Elisabeth Borne and Emmanuel Macron.
They had met Monday at the presidential palace shortly before the formalization of the appointment of the Prime Minister, which took place three weeks after the election of Emmanuel Macron for a second five-year term.
The name of Elisabeth Borne’s chief of staff, Aurélien Rousseau, was revealed at the start of the morning.
At 45, this former communist knows Matignon well for having been deputy chief of staff there under the eras of Manuel Valls and Bernard Cazeneuve, during the five-year term of François Hollande. He more recently served as head of the Ile-de-France Regional Health Agency during the Covid-19 pandemic.
(Report Elizabeth Pineau, edited by Sophie Louet)