This paper was originally published in the 3 April. “High-efficiency “. The reserved Edward Philip was rather loquacious, and even, in its way, panegyric, presenting April 2, live on TF1, the man who is going to drive the déconfinement of the French. Unknown to the general public, the name of Jean Castex returns at regular intervals as soon as there is a vacancy, either at the top of the State or the head of local government. We talked about him for a successor to Gérard Collomb as minister of the Interior, and then to Guillaume Pepy, the head of the SNCF, as well as they had announced a while as candidate for mayor of Toulouse, at the time of the war between Philippe Douste-Blazy and Jean-Luc Moudenc before it settles at the Capitol.
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This is a father of four girls, aged 54, is a man of roots : Gers of birth – he is a native of Vic-Fezensac, a charming village of which his grandfather was the mayor, he became catalan adoption by his wife and, since 2008, mayor of Prades, common a little more than 6,000 inhabitants in the piedmont region of the Eastern Pyrenees, where he was re-elected on 15 march with 75,7% of the votes in the first round – and prefectural counsellor – after having been elected at the region from 2010 to 2015. But this mandarin, passed by the Court of auditors, is also pursuing a course, low-key but without fail, in Paris.
“organizer extraordinaire”
President of the national Agency for sport (since 2019), Jean Castex was, until now, inter-ministerial delegate to the organization of the olympic games of 2024. But he made the most of his career in the health and solidarity at a high level. He knows his subject : in 2004, Xavier Bertrand recruited him as director of the hospitalization and healthcare organization, prior to his director of cabinet in the Health. He keeps a souvenir louangeur : “It is a type that is very strong. Both experienced, full of common sense and with a strong character. “With him, Xavier Bertrand prepares the “plan” pandemic “that he then thought :” We’ve built up strategic stocks, created in France, plants, masks… All that was stripped then regret it. It is an organizer extraordinaire. “
Jean Castex follows the ministry of Labour, before making his way up to the Elysée palace : in 2010, Nicolas Sarkozy chose him to replace Raymond Soubie position very sensitive counsellor, social affairs, and then appointed him deputy secretary-general of the Élysée, a position he held until the end of the mandate in 2012. Castex has meanwhile launched into politics, winning the mayor of Prades. “It is a real swiss army knife,” remembers the former president’s advisor Franck Louvrier. “Not only is it a high official who knows very well the administration, but, with his experience as a local councillor, he knows how it works concretely to the country. He was in the habit to work with everyone, at every level of the State. The kind of profile that is missing in the macronie. In this period of crisis, there should be ten like him… ” Good casting, therefore, on the paper that this man of networks, able to make the bridge between the senior administration and communities, to steer this folder is extra-sensitive to the déconfinement.
The “Michel Drucker to the policy”
“Jean Castex, it is a bit of a Michel Drucker of the policy : we always spend a good time with him and it never becomes annoyed ; this is the kind of man to remember the first names of all your children,” says Antoine Grezaud, ex-dircab of the mayor of Toulouse, who has worked as advisor in the cabinet since the beginning of his career, and shares its roots in Catalan. He never gets in a situation of conflict with someone, he is astute in human relations : live, he is more comfortable in the meetings in the head-to-head in the large masses at the multilateral level. He is stubborn, but at the same time a man of dialogue. He knows how to manage power relationships with the ministries and administrations without enemies. Moreover, each time that he finds a job, it is progressing. Hard worker, he knows all the mysteries of the power. “
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In fact, without denying neither roots nor convictions, the high-level official operates in Paris with agility. Having supported François Fillon to the primary right does not prevent him from becoming a pillar of the administration macroniste. “Its a relationship of trust with the Prime minister are quite recent, but very strong,” says an adviser to Matignon. A reputation as a “super-official” halo Castex, who maintains a friendship with the ubiquitous Benoît Ribadeau-Dumas, the director of the cabinet of Édouard Philippe, but also the assistant of the latter, Thomas Fatome, and the advisor of the shadow of Gilles Boyer, ex-close to Alain Juppé.
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the organisation of The games being “put to sleep” since the entry of the planet into the containment, the choice was almost forced. “The déconfinement going to be an extremely difficult task, one starts from a blank sheet of paper,” admits the entourage of the Prime minister. “We need someone able to adapt a strategy closer to the ground, in link with local elected officials, administrations, and departments. “And the ground, Jean Castex knows. On the lands of the Eastern Pyrenees, he maintains the best relations… with just about everyone. The community of communes of Prades, the left will appreciate it. “He is not a braggart,” said a trade unionist. Even Louis Aliot, candidate RN to the city hall of Perpignan, in the household. We do not know if they have discussed their common passion for rugby – Castex has also been responsible for the organisation of the future world Cup – in any case, they know (very) well, even if Louis Aliot disclaims any proximity with the top official. “I rubbed shoulders with Jean Castex long as the mayor of Prades. He is polite, affable, competent, fairly remote, ” said Louis Aliot. Before the policy, in the local campaign, don changes his mind : “There is no doubt formidable to effectiveness in Paris, as supported by the Prime minister, but here the formula is a smile, as Jean Castex has been little present in two major local folders, one of the RN116 and the TGV. “Our union rep agrees :” It is sure that it hums a little here. For a while, you can see that he is bored… He was looking for a bone to gnaw in Paris. “
white paper
And what os ! Édouard Philippe has warned the French : the déconfinement will be a task equally as difficult as the containment, slow, progressive. Since his appointment express, Jean Castex, has installed his office at Matignon, and begins to recruit his team. “It’s going to surround himself with the best experts and scientists, leading specialists of the Interior, of the Economy…,” commented one advisor. In order to fill the “blank sheet” to the more quickly. Édouard Philippe sent her a list of questions, which he will have to provide the answers : “What is the connection between the déconfinement and the testing strategy ? Should there be a regional approach or an approach by age groups ? “The ministry of Health, a cell is already working on these questions.
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Will he move there ? “It is possible… It is free to work as he intends. “If this is effective and that it is fast. “He has a habit : every time it was called, it was a bit of a mess, such as under Sarkozy in the second part of the quinquennium, at the Elysée palace. It is the fireman who extinguished the fire and stick the pieces, ” says a doctor in health law who knows. “And, to restore order in the administration at this time, we can say that there was work. “Xavier Bertrand does not expect no more miracles :” This is not Superman arrives from Krypton with 2 billion masks, and 100 million tests, he smiles. But, to straighten the bar, this is the best profile. “Man from a” mission blitz “, it will have only a few weeks to demonstrate this.
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Consult our folder : Coronavirus : the world stop
