Early in the morning, something big happened again!
According to CCTV News this morning, French President Emmanuel Macron accepted the resignation submitted by Prime Minister Bornet on January 8. It is reported that until the appointment of the new prime minister is announced, Bornet will still perform his duties as prime minister. According to French media, 34-year-old Education Minister Gabriel Attal is a highly favored candidate.
Bornet, 62, became France's prime minister in May 2022 and held the post for about 20 months. During her tenure, she pushed through the Retirement System Reform Bill and the Immigration Bill in Parliament, which caused some controversy in the country. Bornet is the second female prime minister in French history and the first in the 30 years since the end of World War II.
French President Emmanuel Macron reportedly said in a statement that Bornet had shown "courage, commitment and determination" during his tenure and thanked him for his work.
Come and see the report!
The Prime Minister of France resigned
In her resignation submitted Monday, Bornet briefly reviewed her work as prime minister, including reform of the retirement system, immigration bills and the enactment of a number of laws to address the country's challenges. She thanked Macron for his trust and stressed that the country's need to continue to push for reform is more urgent than ever. Macron praised Bornet's work for the country as "exemplary" and thanked her heartily.
Bornet went to the presidential palace to talk with Macron on the same day, and the official did not disclose the specific details of the talks, but the outside world generally believes that the content of the talks is related to the reshuffle of the government. Macron seeks to inject new impetus into his reform agenda ahead of the European Parliament elections in June.
According to a statement from the French president's office, Bornet will remain prime minister until Macron appoints her successor. According to French media, 34-year-old Education Minister Gabriel Attal is a highly favored candidate.
Some analysts believe that Macron expects to "inject new vitality" into his next term of office through this change of prime minister. According to the French BFM TV report, French officials plan to announce the list of new cabinet members on Tuesday (9th) morning local time, including the replacement of Borne.
In the first half of last year, the government led by French President Emmanuel Macron forcibly pushed ahead with a plan to reform the retirement system, triggering uncontrollable national demonstrations. He was caught between the left and the right at home, and the wave of protests spread through diplomacy, and even the British king's visit was postponed. Then-French Prime Minister Bornet finally issued a statement on March 26 last year, seeking to meet with opposition leaders and trade union representatives in a bid to end a wave of protests that had lasted for weeks. Macron is still considering new ways to implement reforms, sources said. Analysts believe that judging by the current situation, Macron needs a new set of government teams to revive the political momentum of the French government.
Borneqi
According to Wikipedia, Elisabeth Borne (French: Élisabeth Borne) was born on April 18, 1961, and is a French female politician. She served as Minister of Labor of France from 2020 to 2022. On May 16, 2022, after the presidential election, Jean Castel resigned as usual, and President Emmanuel Macron appointed her prime minister.
According to information from Shangguan News, Bornet was born in an ordinary family in Paris, lost her father at a young age, and she once described her childhood as "not easy", and "social justice and equality" became the goal of her life. After that, Bornet graduated from the École Polytechnique de Paris, one of France's top universities. As a thoughtful "science and engineering woman", she once said that she found "a very reassuring and rational thing" in numbers.
She began her political career in the 80s with a career in government, and since then has been closely associated with the center-left Socialist Party. In 2013, she was appointed the first female leader of the Poitou-Charente region. Since then, Bornet has traveled between government and state-owned enterprises, including as a director of the SNCF and the Paris public transport company, in a manner that is said to be harsh.
In 2017, Bornet joined the French Republican Forward Party and is seen as a loyal supporter of Macron. Since then, he has served as Minister of Transport, Minister of Ecological Transition and Solidarity, and Minister of Labour and Social Affairs. During this period, she offered a series of measures to promote environmental protection and employment. During the pandemic, she often appeared on television, reminding the French to work from home. Under Bornet, France's unemployment rate reportedly fell to its lowest level in 15 years.
As for the resolute Bornet, former French interior minister Castanet once commented that she "can make impossible reforms possible". However, while daring to gnaw on the "hard bones", some of Bornet's measures have also caused controversy, including tightening unemployment benefits and ending the "iron rice bowl" culture of the French national railway company. It is reported that the French call the premiership a "bad job" because the prime minister always works hard in the "shadow" of the president.
European political landscape
The political scene in the great European countries is not calm.
Last year, the Dutch political landscape was thrown into disarray, with the government disintegrating over disagreements over how to address immigration. After months of negotiations, a four-party coalition of the Liberal Party (VVD), the Social Liberal Party (D66), the Christian Democratic Party (CDA) and the small party Christian Alliance (CU) announced the resignation of the government. Four-time Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte has announced that he will not run for office again.
Germany's Der Spiegel said on January 7 this year that 2024 will be a super election year. Countries with a total population of about 2.5 billion people in the world will hold elections this year. In addition to the US elections, the European Parliament elections in early June and the elections in many European countries are clearly important for world politics. From Scandinavia to countries such as Belgium, Germany and Austria, far-right parties are expected to rise in full force in elections this year, creating a new major upheaval in Europe.
Elections to the new European Parliament are scheduled to take place from 6 to 9 June this year. This will be the first European Parliament election after Brexit and is seen as a "weather vane" for European politics. Elections to the European Parliament are held every five years. More than 400 million voters in the EU's 27 member states will vote for around 700 MPs. The European Parliament is the oversight, advisory and legislative body of the European Union, and in recent years, it has become more and more vocal in the EU budget, EU affairs, personnel appointments and other fields.
According to Lianhe Zaobao, the nomination of the new president of the European Commission needs to be voted on by the European Parliament. The President of the European Commission is equivalent to the "head of government" of the European Union and has a significant influence on EU decision-making. The current president of the European Commission is von der Leyen from Germany, who has not publicly indicated whether she is seeking re-election. According to AFP, if she seeks re-election, she is expected to gain the support of lawmakers from the center-right camp and key EU member states.
Editor-in-charge: Wang Lulu
Proofreading: Su Huanwen