Extremely rare format
Macron meets with all party leaders
08/30/2023, 10:05 p.m
In his second term, Macron governs France without a majority in parliament. In order to prevent controversial projects from being blocked, the President invites the party leaders to talks in the Paris suburbs. After initial hesitation, all of his opponents agree.
French President Emmanuel Macron met with representatives of the parties represented in Parliament in Paris. The aim of the talks was to reach the broadest possible agreement on legislative projects and, if necessary, to clear the way for referendums. Macron’s political camp said that the president, who has not had his own majority in the National Assembly since the parliamentary elections in June 2022, wants to use “all the means at his disposal” to prevent a political blockade.
The format of conversations between presidents and party leaders is extremely rare in France. Macron is aiming for an agreement, particularly on politically contested issues such as migration, public security and the labor market. The meeting will take place in the Paris suburb of Saint-Denis, closed to the press, where violent riots broke out between late June and early July, as in other suburbs and French cities.
The heads of all parties represented in Parliament accepted Macron’s invitation. Several left-wing representatives initially decided to stay away from the meeting – and spoke of a “media staging” of the president. Upon their arrival, the representatives of the left-wing opposition assured them that they had not “fallen for” “Macron’s PR campaign”. The leader of the Green party EELV complained about the lack of environmental issues in Macron’s letter of invitation.
RN boss welcomes open discussion
The leader of the right-wing populist Rassemblement National party, Jordan Bardella, announced that this was an opportunity for an “open discussion” with Macron. However, he will not serve as a “crutch” for the head of state, Bardella stated, but will speak for “millions of French people” who want a different policy, particularly with regard to security and purchasing power.
According to the Élysée Palace, the participants are invited to two rounds of talks on the international situation and the reform of the institutions. After that there should be a “working lunch” to deal with questions about school education, authorities, integration and inequality that were raised by the riots from the end of June, it said.
Macron’s Renaissance Party wants to campaign for a referendum on three to five questions, such as institutional reform. “When people vote yes, that’s a way to re-legitimize themselves,” said a party official.