Le Pen denies playing a part in Macron's choice of Barnier as French PM

FRANCE 24

8 September 2024 at 8:52 am·1-min read

French far-right leader Marine Le Pen on Sunday said she played no part in the appointment of veteran conservative Michel Barnier as French PM, denying media reports that she assured President Emmanuel Macron her party would not back a no-confidence motion to topple the incoming premier.

After weeks of dithering, Macron on Thursday appointed Barnier, a 73-year-old former foreign minister who acted as the European Union's Brexit negotiator, as prime minister, seeking to move forward after June-July snap elections that resulted in a hung parliament.

But analysts say the country is set for a period of instability, with Barnier's hold on power seen as fragile and dependent on support from Le Pen's eurosceptic, anti-immigration National Rally (RN) party, which is the largest single party in the new National Assembly.

A left-wing coalition, which emerged as France's largest political bloc after the elections, although short of an overall majority, is also piling pressure on Barnier.

More than 100,000 left-wing demonstrators rallied across France on Saturday to protest against his nomination and denounce Macron's "power grab", furious at his decision to bypass the left and appoint a conservative PM instead.

Addressing reporters on Sunday, Le Pen, who leads RN lawmakers in parliament, denied media reports that she discussed Barnier's appointment in a phonecall with Macron on Thursday, adding: "I am not Macron's head of human resources".

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