Even if Emmanuel Macron asked him to stay a little longer than expected, Jean Castex is living his last hours as Prime Minister. “I liked it a lot. It’s a hive that works perfectly”enthusiastically describes the former mayor of Prades, under the sun which bathes the garden of Matignon.
The head of government explains that one of his main concerns, for nearly two years on rue de Varenne, has been the constant search for efficiency and the desire to avoid hiccups, so as not to add tension to a period of crisis marked by the Covid-19 pandemic and then the war in Ukraine. “We do not manage a holiday club but state affairs. So it has to work”slice Jean Castex.
Local elected official, former deputy secretary general of the Elysée under Nicolas Sarkozy, no one expected to see him replace Edouard Philippe in July 2020. “Exercising these functions has been an accomplishment for me, an immense pride. I have never felt ‘hellish'”smiles Jean Castex, in reference to this “hell of Matignon” described by some of his predecessors.
The couple formed with the President of the Republic will have been at the heart of his stay at Matignon. To those who describe Jean Castex as an erased head of government, specially chosen by Emmanuel Macron so as not to overshadow him, the person concerned replies that “the Prime Minister was perfectly respected in his role”. “He was not a simple collaborator”, judges one of his supporters. Moreover, the entourage of Jean Castex denies the supposed “Jupiterian” management of the Head of State, who would decide everything, all alone. He explains on the contrary that he spent his time discussing with the Head of State, each in his place.
“I have the feeling of having had a relationship of mutual respect and listening with Emmanuel Macron.”
John Castexin the political department of France Télévisions
Jean Castex will have succeeded in shaping the image of an atypical head of government, debonair and close to the French. “Nobody knew him”notes a member of his entourage for whom the hardest part for a Prime Minister “is to establish a relationship with public opinion”. In terms of the balance sheet, its teams feel that the management of the health crisis has been rather good.
So why not want to extend the rue de Varenne lease? “The elections mark a new political moment, which requires a new breath”analyzes Jean Castex about the current electoral sequence. “The president is re-elected, we hope that the majority will be reappointed. If the Prime Minister was also reappointed, it would give the impression of not having heard the message of the presidential election”adds one of his advisers.
Who will succeed Jean Castex at Matignon? The one who is still Prime Minister for a few days smiles but dodges the question. Several members of his entourage believe that the time has come to entrust this position to a woman. What will the future of Jean Castex be made of after this mission like no other? “I will leave the national political field. I know where I come from and I know where I will return”assures Jean Castex, who therefore rules out the possibility of appearing in the future government in another position.
His relatives say he wants to put his experience to the benefit of integration and a social elevator that has broken down today. But his immediate priority is elsewhere: three weeks of vacation at home, in the Pyrénées-Orientales.