The previous Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne resigned on Monday. The handover was scheduled to take place in the afternoon. As the new head of government, Attal then wanted to visit the areas in northern France affected by the floods.
Borne’s term of office was marked by the unpopular pension reform and the highly controversial immigration law. The opposition accused her of frequently using a constitutional article that avoided lengthy parliamentary debates.
After saying goodbye to the discreet but efficient head of government, Macron is now bringing an up-and-coming and popular young politician to his side. Attal has had an unusually rapid career: after studying at the elite Sciences Po university, he initially became involved in the socialist party and was then one of Macron’s earliest companions when he began his campaign for the presidency. At the age of 29, he became the youngest member of the government as State Secretary for Youth.
Every few months he continued to move up the ranks, becoming government spokesman, deputy budget minister and finally, almost six months ago, education minister. In this office, among other things, he implemented a ban on the long overdresses worn by some Muslim girls in schools. He also spoke out in favor of introducing school uniforms on a trial basis – both concerns that were primarily intended to appeal to right-wing voters.
As education minister, Attal also openly confessed that he had experienced bullying in his youth and was hostile because of his homosexuality and his Jewish origins. Attal lived for a time in a registered partnership with Stéphane Séjourné, who is now head of the liberal group in the EU Parliament. “A couple in the heart of power,” was the headline of a double portrait of the two in the newspaper “Le Monde” in 2021. According to Attal’s most recent asset declaration, that partnership has now been dissolved.
Attal’s appointment suggests that Macron wants to close the inglorious chapter of reforms to the pension system and immigration policy that were pushed through in the face of massive resistance. Attal’s profile is similar to that of the president a few years ago. Macron was only four years older than Attal when he first won the presidential election in 2017.
In doing so, Macron also runs the risk of giving space to a politician who is already more popular than himself. He had already experienced this situation with his first prime minister, Edouard Philppe, who was soon replaced by the technocrat Jean Castex.
But with a view to the EU elections in six months, Attal’s media impact may have been the deciding factor. Even as a schoolboy, the son of a film producer was quick-witted and confident in front of cameras.
The opposition reacted critically to derisively to the appointment. “Attal will once again become government spokesman. The office of prime minister will therefore no longer apply,” commented left-wing populist party leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon. The right-wing populist MP Sébastien Chénu saw the appointment of the very young head of government as a response to the 28-year-old head of the Rassemblement National party, Jordan Bardella. “The government is moving closer to us in content and form,” he said.
As expected, there was a lot of praise in the government camp: Attal represents “new momentum,” emphasized Sylvain Maillard, chairman of the Renaissance faction.
Attal’s first task as head of government is to reassemble his government team. This has probably been negotiated behind the scenes in the past few days.
