Emmanuel Macron and Gabriel Attal have so far only named fourteen ministers. Even if a second round of appointments will soon take place to allocate certain portfolios, this tightening of the government team is not just political marketing.
It was necessary to put all of this into images. Smile on his lips, tap on the table, Emmanuel Macron launches a “at work !” to his fourteen new ministers, in front of the crackling flashes of photographers. To hammer home the idea of a tighter government, the Council of Ministers of Gabriel Attal’s new government was held, Friday January 12, not in the Ambassadors’ lounge but in the green lounge of the presidential palace, which is traditionally the work piece of the head of state.
The place is much more cramped, and the table is much smaller than the one around which ministers usually meet. “This is a first in the green room which is made possible by the historically tight composition of this government”communicates the Presidency of the Republic.
“The government assembled, at work!”
The first council of ministers of the Attal government is held at the Elysée pic.twitter.com/bCsegRlF8z
— franceinfo (@franceinfo) January 12, 2024
The list of Gabriel Attal’s team was presented the day before by the secretary general of the Elysée, Alexis Kohler. “It’s the tightest team in the Fifth Republic”immediately informed the entourage of the Head of State, who praises, with a sporting metaphor in support, “a form of XV of France which will act as a pack”, “to act more united, faster and stronger in the service of the French.” If we look at the first appointment decrees since the Fillon government in 2007, the fourteen ministers who make up Gabriel Attal’s team constitute the smallest government in recent decades.
An old temptation
Certain personalities thus inherit a super-ministry bringing together several administrations. Amélie Oudéa-Castéra, Minister of Sports and the Olympic Games, notably took over the portfolio of National Education and Youth. Which immediately aroused the ire of the teaching unions. “There is a lot of anger. National education is diluted in this large ministry (…) How can we manage the Olympic Games and the Paralympic Games at the same time and manage all the files of National Education?”questioned Sophie Vénétitay, general secretary of Snes-FSU, on France 2.
Catherine Vautrin, former minister of Jacques Chirac, inherits a large social ministry with work, health and solidarity. Another example: the civil service, embodied in the Borne government by Stanislas Guerini and which no longer has a full ministry, which, again, annoyed the unions. We will actually have to wait for the second round of nominations, within a week or so, to know the exact number of members of the Attal government. Ministers, delegated ministers and secretaries of state should be around thirty in total, according to Matignon’s assessments. Much less than the 42 members of Elisabeth Borne’s government in July 2022. “They want to show a very tight government for a week and advertise on it”sneers a ministerial advisor.
“The temptation to have a tighter government has existed in every reshuffle for a good twenty yearsrecalls communicator Philippe Moreau-Chevrolet. We want to send the image of a team which is concerned with saving public money and which is efficient. It is in line with a right-wing or Macronist discourse.”
“Tightened government is a marketing tool more than a material reality, since it is quickly contradicted in reality. Government action requires people, resources, and therefore secretaries of state are necessarily needed. “
Philippe Moreau-Chevrolet, communicatorat franceinfo
“It is always a communication temptation to create a commando government in which ministers have room to maneuver. It is true that this version is tighter than the usual ones, but we will have to wait for the second appointments, where it will be loosens oftenattests a former minister. There are still many sectors where we do not know to which ministry they will be attached, such as energy, transport or housing.” But, according to her, a bloated government is not ideal either. “When you have 43 members of government, you have 25 who have difficulty existing in the political game and are never invited to the media, carry no weight. This creates a two-, or even three-speed, government, where speech public is fragmented.”
“Strong ministers to influence their administrations”
The political incarnation of his ministers has long been a subject for Emmanuel Macron. Many members of the government, particularly from civil society, were not identified by the French. “I understand the logic: in incarnation, we have 14 ministers. They are known to the French, can play politics, sell their results to the French.”observes a former advisor to the executive. “This allows for a greater breath effect,” supports Renaissance MP Robin Reda, but “it is also to translate words into action and clearly show the major priority sectors to administrations.”
In short, identified political ministers capable of setting the course. “It is essential to have strong ministers to influence their administrations”, estimates Renaissance MP Mathieu Lefèvre. That’s it for the first stage of the rocket. “Then, we will have secretaries of state, who will be the equivalent of central administration directors, who will do the technical work”assures a former government advisor. “I don’t know if it’s manageable. The perimeters are very large,” he nevertheless qualifies.
Others are also cautious. “J“I think the government needed to be tightened, but maybe not as much… Especially for the health part, for example,” book a Renaissance MP. “Vautrin’s ministry is a bit like perlimpinpin powdersmiles another member of the majority. It’s too broad, she’ll be forced to delegate.” This is what is emerging with the upcoming appointment of Agnès Pannier-Runacher, until now in charge of energy, as Minister for Health.
If these very expanded ministerial perimeters raise questions, they are far from being a first in the history of the Fifth Republic. Under Nicolas Sarkozy, Xavier Bertrand was Minister of Labor, Employment and Health in 2010, like Catherine Vautrin today. Lionel Jospin was also Minister of National Education, Youth and Sports between 1988 and 1991 under François Mitterrand. In 2020, Jean-Michel Blanquer also inherited the same responsibilities. Not everyone had the same longevity. But this return to a smaller number of ministers certainly reflects “a recentralization of the State”, according to Philippe Moreau-Chevrolet. “We are reducing the number of ministers to reduce the transmission belts, it is striking.”