Macron polishes presidency with £24,000 of make-up
Popularity of the French leader suffers another blow as the foundation of his appeal is revealed
EMMANUEL MACRON spent €26,000 (£24,000) on make-up during his first three months as president of France, it has emerged.
In potentially damaging news for the 39-year old centrist leader, whose popularity is waning, Le Point reported that his personal make-up artist, named only as Natacha M, put in two bills, one for €10,000 (£9,200) and another for €16,000 (£14,750).
The Elysée Palace defended the fee, saying: “We called in a contractor as a matter of urgency”. The same make-up artist also applied foundation to Mr Macron during his presidential campaign.
It may seem like a stratospheric sum for a president who has described his style as “Jupiterian” – lofty in the spirit of the God of Roman gods.
The gross figure is higher than the €6,000 (£5,500) salary Mr Hollande paid his staff make-up artist, but it is less when social charges are added. Le Point put the overall figure for Mr Hollande’s make-up at €30,000 (£27,700) per quarter. Nicolas Sarkozy, meanwhile, paid a whopping €8,000 (£7,400) per month for his, according to Vanity Fair.
All these sums pale into comparison with the £99,000 Mr Hollande paid his personal barber. The amount sparked accusations of “shampoo socialism”. The disclosure caused particular shock because Mr Hollande came to power on a Left-wing platform, promising to be a “normal president” who would break with the “extravagance” of his conservative predecessor, Mr Sarkozy, and his model wife, Carla Bruni. The hairdresser, Olivier Benhamou, was hired to work at the Elysée Palace in 2012 for the duration of Mr Hollande’s five-year term. He also reportedly enjoyed a housing allowance and family benefits.
Le Point made no mention of Mr Ma- cron’s spending on his hair. Aides said the president’s spending on make-up would be “significantly reduced”.
The revelations came as Mr Hollande launched a political comeback with a scathing put-down of Mr Macron.
Breaking his silence after leaving office in May, the Socialist ex-president took aim at his former economy minister, warning him against forcing the French into useless “sacrifices” and too much labour “flexibility”.
He also claimed that an upswing in the French economy was all his doing and that Mr Macron risked killing it off with too much austerity.
“The French mustn’t be asked to make sacrifices that are not useful,” he said. “The labour market mustn’t be made more flexible than we have already made it, at the risk of creating ruptures,” he warned.
The blows were apparently timed to inflict maximum damage just as Mr Macron’s centrist government enters the toughest test of his term to date this week, detailing radical labour reforms to unions ahead of a pledge to push them through via decree.
The hardline CGT union has already called for a day of protests on Sept 12. Far-left MPS are calling for another day of action on Sept 23. Speaking at a film festival in Angoulême, western France, Mr Hollande, 62, who became the first president in modern history not to run for re-election due to his unpopularity, also got in a jab about Mr Macron’s decision to ditch the traditional Bastille Day interview, saying that his thoughts were too “complex” for reporters seeking soundbites. Mr Hollande added, with a dose of sarcasm: “I don’t want to complicate my successor’s task”. Mr Macron, 39, hit back, saying he would leave it to others to compile a “weather report over whether France is faring better”.
In a further sign he wants to raise his profile, Mr Hollande posed for the first time with his girlfriend, the actress Julie Gayet, whom he had been seeing during the presidency but studiously avoided having their picture taken together. He was alongside the actress, and the singer Charles Aznavour, 93.