French PM Bayrou appoints new government. Former prime minister Elisabeth Borne named education minister – Technologist

French President Emmanuel Macron’s office announced a new government on Monday, December 23, after the previous cabinet collapsed in a historic no-confidence vote.

Prime Minister François Bayrou’s government includes notable newcomers, such as former socialist minister turned Macron supporter Manuel Valls, who became minister in charge of overseas territories, and former prime minister Elisabeth Borne, who was appointed education minister. Former interior minister Gérald Darmanin was named justice minister.

Conservative Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau, who has vowed to crack down on illegal immigration, kept his job. Bayrou had said Retailleau, one of the highest-profile ministers in the outgoing government, “had found directions that responded to what part of public opinion was demanding.”

Also staying in office from the previous government are right-wing culture minister Rachida Dati, Defense Minister Sébastien Lecornu and Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot.

Budget

Bayrou, the 73-year-old head of the centrist MoDem group, which is allied to Macron’s party, held final consultations throughout the weekend, racing to form a government before Christmas. His most immediate priority is to make sure his government survives a no-confidence vote and passes a budget for next year. Eric Lombard is the new economy minister.

The unexpected comeback of Valls, premier from 2014 to 2016, as the head of the overseas territories ministry indicates the importance of the post after authorities were strongly criticized for their response to the deadly cyclone on the Indian Ocean territory of Mayotte, which killed at least 35 people, with authorities warning the toll could soar.

Radical left leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon has vowed to table a motion of no confidence when Bayrou, the fourth prime minister of 2024, gives a policy speech to parliament on January 14.

The minority government of Bayrou’s predecessor, Michel Barnier, had leaned on support from Macron’s centrist camp and his own conservative Les Républicains party, and the approval of the far-right of Marine Le Pen. But earlier this month, the far right and left wing joined forces to eject Barnier from office, making his the shortest stint as prime minister in France’s Fifth Republic, which began in 1958.

Deputy leader of the far-right Rassemblement National Sébastien Chenu took shots at the new prime minister on BFMTV on Sunday, asking, “Who understands what François Bayrou wants to do?” But, he said, the party was “not going to vote for a motion of censure immediately.”

Bayrou has endured a tumultuous first week as premier, not least after facing a barrage of criticism for attending a town hall meeting in the Pyrénées city of Pau, of which he remains mayor, while the French territory of Mayotte, in the Indian Ocean, was grappling with the catastrophic aftermath of Cyclone Chido. Bayrou has warned of the peril ahead if his government falls. “If we fail in this attempt, then this is the last stop before the cliff,” he said.

France has been mired in deadlock since Macron gambled on snap elections this summer in the hopes of bolstering his authority. The move backfired, with voters returning an Assemblée Nationale fractured between three rival blocs.