Democracy Now! Political Chaos in France: Macron Refuses to Resign After Hand-picked PM Ousted by Lawmakers

Dec 6, 2024 | France has been plunged into political chaos after lawmakers from across the political spectrum voted to oust Prime Minister Michel Barnier in a no-confidence vote Wednesday, a major blow to President Emmanuel Macron, who had hand-picked the conservative lawmaker to lead the National Assembly. Macron called a snap election earlier this year to counter the rise of the racist National Rally party of Marine Le Pen, but he then refused to work with the leftist New Popular Front that won the most seats, opting for an establishment pick instead. With the government's collapse, Macron has vowed to name a new prime minister and stay on to finish his own term, which ends in 2027, despite his growing unpopularity. "We're in this unprecedented situation of turmoil," says journalist Cole Stangler in Marseilles. He says Macron's decision to call early elections was "a self-inflicted wound" that ended up empowering the far right and making it virtually impossible for any faction to lead. "We have a mathematical problem. France needs to have a government, and you have three pretty evenly split blocs," says Stangler.

Brexit: Michel Barnier's Post-Brexit Warning to UK and EU - "Be Careful" | Interview

With the UK hit by a fuel crisis and labour shortage, many in the country have pointed the finger at Brexit.

Amid the disruption, Michel Barnier, the EU’s former chief Brexit negotiator, sat down with the New Statesman to discuss his new book, My Secret Brexit Diary, an account of his time leading talks with the UK ahead of its exit from the Union.

Barnier, who is seeking the nomination of France’s centre-right Republican party ahead of the 2022 presidential election, told how he fears that Brexit was a warning to the rest of Europe, where Euroscepticism could rise if voters continue to be ignored. “It is too late for the British people, but it is not too late for us,” he said.

He also spoke about his run for the Elysée and the future of international relations in the wake of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan and the US, UK and Australia’s Aukus treaty. On the future of the transatlantic relationship, Barnier noted that the new arms deal had tested the trust between France and the US and UK. “An alliance needs trust and confidence… I recommend that the UK and the US, who are our allies, be careful and [bear in mind] the necessity for us to work together.”

Michel Barnier: Former EU Negotiator on Brexit, Immigration & the French Presidency - BBC Newsnight

Sep 28, 2021 • The EU’s former Brexit chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, joins Emily Maitlis in his first UK broadcast interview since the publication of his book 'My Secret Brexit Diary'.

The Brexit vote was five years ago and the Brexit deal was struck nearly two years ago.

And yet the tentacles of those decisions are being felt more vividly today than ever before. Whether its discussions over rising wages of lorry drivers, or the migrant worker shortages seen in so many of our sectors.

Newsnight talks to the man who negotiated that deal for the EU, Michel Barnier.

Emily Maitlis started by asking him if he felt the negotiations ended up where he expected.

Michel Barnier to Run in French Presidential Election

Michel Barnier said that limiting immigration would be a key policy pledge. Photograph: Reuters
The EU’s former chief negotiator on Brexit, Michel Barnier, plans to stand as a right-wing candidate against Emmanuel Macron in next year’s French presidential elections, saying that limiting immigration would be a key policy pledge.

“In these grave times, I have taken the decision and have the determination to stand … and be the president of a France that is reconciled, to respect the French and have France respected,” he told the evening news show of TF1 television in a live interview.

Barnier, who is entering an increasingly crowded field on the right, cited his long experience in politics as giving him an edge in the race including the “extraordinary” negotiations to find a deal on Britain’s exit from the European Union. He said during the years-long process he had to work “with heads of state and government to preserve the unity of all the European countries”.

Asked why he wanted to challenge Macron – with whom he had worked closely in the Brexit process – Barnier replied that he wanted to “change the country”. » | Agence France-Presse | Thursday, August 26, 2021

Michel Barnier: «Je veux être un président qui respecte les Français et fait respecter la France» »

Michel Barnier 'Worried' by No 10 Plans to Renege on Brexit Deal

THE GUARDIAN: EU’s chief Brexit negotiator said full implementation of withdrawal agreement vital for avoiding a hard border

Michel Barnier said he was “worried” by the latest twists in the Brexit negotiations and would seek answers from the UK’s chief negotiator, David Frost, over claims that Downing Street is planning to negate parts of the withdrawal agreement.

The EU’s chief Brexit negotiator said full implementation of the international treaty was vital for avoiding a hard border on the island of Ireland as it was reported that the government is planning legislation to override parts of the deal struck last year.

Ahead of the start on Tuesday of the latest round of trade and security negotiations with the British government, Barnier said the Northern Ireland protocol in the withdrawal deal was a “prerequisite for peace since the end of the conflict ... and it’s the prerequisite for a united and coherent economy for the entire island, and also to respect the single market”. » | Daniel Boffey and Jennifer Rankin in Brussels | Monday, September 7, 2020

Michel Barnier Tells UK: Ignore EU Regulatory Standards at Your Peril

THE GUARDIAN: Brexit negotiator links free-trade deal to workers’ rights and environmental protection

British companies risk trade barriers to the European Union if a future government seeks to abandon EU standards on workers’ rights and environmental protection, Michel Barnier has signalled.

In an interview with the Guardian and seven other European newspapers, the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator said any British government would face a “proportional” response if it sought to roll back core social, environmental and consumer standards.

The EU and UK have agreed to negotiate a free-trade agreement as part of Boris Johnson’s revamped Brexit deal, but Barnier stressed that tariff and quota-free access to the EU were linked to maintaining regulatory standards. “Access to our markets will be proportional to the commitments taken to the common rules,” he said. “The agreement we are ready to discuss is zero tariffs, zero quotas, zero dumping.” » | Jennifer Rankin in Brussels | Tuesday, October 29, 2019

‘We Cannot Change What We Are’: Michel Barnier Stares Down Tory Threats

THE OBSERVER: EU’s chief negotiator reaffirms that a no-deal outcome would be the responsibility of Boris Johnson

As the Brexit pressure ratchets up another notch, Michel Barnier appears everything most of the current British government is not: clear, calm, precise – and logical to a fault.

“I promised myself from the start,” the EU’s silver-haired, grey-suited chief negotiator told a packed theatre near the Gare du Nord in Paris on Saturday, “that I would not allow passion or emotion into my approach to Brexit.

“I work on facts, on figures. On what is legal and operable. My obligation is to defend, calmly and firmly, the interests of the European Union, of its citizens, its companies, its regions … And in leaving, the UK cannot ask us to change what we are.” » | Toby Helm and Jon Henley | Saturday, October 5, 2019

THE OBSERVER: Michel Barnier: blame Boris Johnson for a no-deal Brexit » | Saturday, October 5, 2019

Barnier Says EU Must Weigh Cost and Benefit of Any Brexit Delay

Michel Barnier has warned the UK government that a prolonged extension may only make sense if it increases the chances of a deal being ratified by British parliament. The EU’s chief negotiator said the bloc’s heads of state and government would want to be convinced of the usefulness of extra time, given the costs involved. Barnier added that the British government and parliament must decide quickly on how to move forward

Price of Brexit delay could be referendum or election, says Barnier »

Michel Barnier Is Negotiating Brexit for the 500 Million EU Citizens That Remain

Brexit Talks Will Not Be Quick Or Painless, Says EU's Chief Negotiator

Michel Barnier says he hopes to reach an entente cordiale with UK and refuses to confirm reports of possible €100bn exit bill

Read the Guardian article here