The Borne Supremacy: French PM pitches Macron’s
reform agenda amid parliamentary chaos
Elisabeth Borne sets out the government’s plans in a
rowdy National Assembly.
BY GIORGIO
LEALI
July 6,
2022 7:59 pm
PARIS —
French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne came out swinging Wednesday, giving a
speech to a fragmented parliament in which she laid out broad policy lines for
her new government amid vociferous opposition, especially from left-wing MPs.
“For too
long our political life has been made up of two opposing blocs. It is time to
enter the era of forces that build together,” Borne told the National Assembly
in an animated speech that lasted an hour and a half.
Borne
outlined the highlights of her government’s program, spanning from pension
reform to the full nationalization of debt-laden energy giant EDF.
The scene
was at times reminiscent of the noise and chaos seen in the U.K.’s House of
Commons and reflected the reality of French President Emmanuel Macron’s second
term, as he lacks an outright majority and will face strong opposition to his
reform agenda. After June’s parliamentary election, Macron’s coalition failed
to obtain an absolute majority and will therefore have to find support from
other political groups on a bill-by-bill basis.
Heading a
minority government — a rare occurrence in modern France — Borne cast herself
as the ideal leader to mediate between different parties, while making clear
that the government won’t give up on its most controversial priorities. “I
probably don’t fit the robot portrait that some were expecting,” she said,
hinting at the fact that she won’t simply execute Macron’s orders. “It’s a good
thing, the situation is unprecedented.”
As she
listed her priorities, Borne had to face continuous interruptions from
opposition lawmakers, especially from the left-wing France Unbowed movement but
also, to a lesser extent, from the conservative Republicans. But the
freshly-confirmed prime minister didn’t seem to be put off by the at-times
steady stream of jeers, and she smiled at nearly every interruption. Compared
with other opposition lawmakers, MPs from the far-right National Rally remained
mostly muted.
Borne went
on to detail an upcoming so-called “purchasing power” package that aims to
fight the pressures from growing inflation and will be discussed in parliament
in the coming days. The “urgency text” will notably prolong existing measures
to cap the price of gas and electricity, and introduce special financial
support for people who have to use vehicles for work, Borne said. It will also
reduce taxes on autonomous workers and raise the value of social benefits and
pensions.
Borne was
quick to reassure lawmakers that “these measures are our working basis” and
that the government “will listen to you and amend them when convergences will
emerge.”
In her
wide-ranging speech, Borne had to find an equilibrium between the government’s
goals and the fragmentation in parliament.
She
insisted on some of Macron’s distinctive proposals such as a controversial
reform that would raise the pension age. “Our social model is a paradox: it is
one of the most generous and one in which we work the least,” she said. “Yes,
progressively we will have to work a bit longer,” she added, triggering a wave
of boos from opposition lawmakers. At the same time, she tried to praise
left-wing and Green lawmakers — as she insisted on the need to reduce energy
consumption — but also gave a nod to right-wing MPs by promising better
management of migration flows and more resources for police.
She called
for reducing energy dependence on Russia and made clear that investments in
nuclear energy will remain a top priority for France. “Energetic transition
involves nuclear,” she said, adding that such an approach “is widely shared” by
lawmakers.
Elisa Braün, Julie Tomiche and Victor Di Bartolo contributed
reporting.
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