Wanted: woman for worst job in France

Prime ministers in the country usually keep a low profile or end up being dismissed

It is known in France as the political job from hell.

A prime minister should be loyal, content at lingering in their boss’ shadow and a dab hand with the many layered bureaucracy. He or she should also know they will be disposed of if the president’s popularity runs low.

These will be some of the qualities President Emmanuel Macron has in mind as he considers a new prime minister to launch a second term that will be without any honeymoon with the electorate.

A Macron strategist said the president would name a new prime minister before the June legislative elections. He needs to send a signal that he has heard the frustrations of voters expressed in low turnout and big scores for farright and far-left parties.

An official who spoke on condition of anonymity and another government source said Macron was looking for a woman PM after failing to fulfil a campaign assurance to do so in his first term.

If it were so, she would be the first since Edith Cresson briefly occupied the role during the presidency of Socialist leader Francois Mitterand in the early 1990s.

The same two sources said the president also wanted a person with proven “green” credentials.

During the presidential campaign, Macron said he would put his next prime minister in charge of “green planning”, aiming to appeal to left-wing voters’ nostalgia for post-war central planning while tapping into 21st century worries about climate change.

In keeping with French tradition, Macron is seen as picking a competent, safe pair of hands with limited charisma. “It is not in his interest to name someone who could overshadow him,” the government official said.

His first prime minister, Edouard Philippe, had been the unknown mayor of the mid-sized port city of Le Havre. Philippe grew increasingly popular during the pandemic, giving empathetic news conferences that contrasted with Macron’s warlike addresses.

His popularity left Macron feeling threatened, sources say, and he was replaced by Jean Castex, an innocuous mayor from near the Pyrenees.

Now, several names are circulating – often a sure sign they will not be the right ones. Among them are Labour Minister Elisabeth Borne and Agriculture Minister Julien Denormandie, both seen as competent left-leaning technocrats with experience in environmental affairs.

Former environment minister Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet was also being discussed.

As in 2017, the president is likely to keep his cards close to his chest. “The president will surprise us,” the government official said.