Outgoing ministers do not receive material benefits but they retain a salary for a few months, provided they meet certain criteria.
With the reshuffle, some ministers are not reappointed to the government of Elisabeth Borne. Gabriel Attal recovering the ministerial morocco for National Education, Aurélien Rousseau that of Health, Pap Ndiaye and François Braun are leaving. And for them, as for the other members of the government who are not reappointed, the advantages they enjoy, especially in kind, will come to an end.
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No more unlimited first-class plane or train tickets, company car with driver and no more company accommodation paid for by the State. However, some former ministers may benefit from police protection, decided by the Minister of the Interior. This was the case for Christiane Taubira and Rachida Dati when they left the Ministry of Justice in 2016 and 2009 respectively.
Compensation for three months, subject to conditions
Regarding their remuneration, outgoing Ministers and Secretaries of State continue to receive an allowance for three months. This period was six months before the 2013 law on transparency in public life. This allowance is equivalent to their former salary which is fixed, according to Capitalat 10,490 euros gross per month for ministers and 10,115 euros gross for secretaries of state. “This three-month duration means that unlike a traditional worker, […] former ministers do not have unemployment insurance. The compensation ceases to be paid as soon as the former minister resumes a professional activity.explained Matthieu Caron, lecturer in public law at the University of Valenciennes and director general of the Observatory of public ethics, at franceinfo.
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But the remuneration is subject to two conditions. First of all, there will be no compensation if the former member of the government finds a remunerated activity or recovers a parliamentary seat during the three months following his departure from the government. Another condition, the former minister or secretary of state, must within two months of leaving office, send a new declaration of assets as well as a new declaration of interests to the High Authority for the transparency of public life (HATVP) to verify that the person has not illegally enriched themselves while in government, underlines the site life-public. Any former member of the government must also apply to the HATVP if he wishes to work in the private sector during the three years following his time in government.
The special status of the Prime Minister
These advantages are far from those of a Prime Minister or an outgoing Prime Minister. Indeed, if a former tenant of Matignon also receives compensation for a period of three months, he can benefit from a private secretary as well as a company vehicle with driver for ten years and until the age of 67 at the latest. These means are not granted for life since a decree of 2019 which imposes a limit of duration.