“The French are waiting for us to continue this absolute effort for their security,” said Gabriel Attal on Wednesday after a trip to the Ermont-Eaubonne police station in Val-d’Oise. “I cannot imagine a society without order and without rules. And so it is also the business of families. It is obviously also the business of the school. It is the business of society as a whole “, also declared the new Prime Minister, who was accompanied by the Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin.
Attal and Darmanin appeared all smiles
“The French aspire to live quietly and peacefully in our country,” he added, referring to the urban riots of the summer of 2023 which also affected Ermont. “They expect us to continue this absolute effort for their safety,” he insisted. Gabriel Attal also took care to showcase his own authority while many are wondering about his future room for maneuver in the face of more experienced ministers who are already aiming to succeed the President of the Republic Emmanuel Macron.
The Prime Minister and the outgoing Minister of the Interior, whose presence seemed to confirm his reappointment, appeared all smiles. Even if Gérald Darmanin was sometimes in the background, looking pinched, behind Gabriel Attal. The day after his appointment, the new tenant of Matignon also continued his discussions with the Head of State on the future government casting. The two heads of the executive met for two hours over lunch. They had already talked until 2 a.m. on the night of Tuesday to Wednesday.
A government composition revealed on Thursday?
The composition of the future government could be revealed as early as Thursday, at least at the level of full ministers, according to sources within the executive. That of the Secretaries of State would come later. “Logic would dictate 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.
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. At the Élysée as at Matignon, nothing filtered through on the casting or on the announcement calendar, except the “desire to move quickly”.