The sense of negotiation, the gravity of the situation, and no other majority than that of the central bloc... The reasons that led to the choice of Sébastien Lecornu, according to Emmanuel Macron's entourage

At the Élysée Palace, Emmanuel Macron's close associates are highlighting the new Prime Minister's negotiating skills and are making it clear that he will have time to build a government majority.

Following the appointment of Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister on Tuesday, September 9, the Élysée Palace explained that there was no other majority than the very relative one that supported François Bayrou, that is, the central bloc extended to the Republicans, franceinfo learned from Emmanuel Macron's entourage. The head of state even called Olivier Faure an hour before the announcement to inform him that he would not choose a Socialist Prime Minister, according to the same source.

The Élysée Palace also emphasizes that Sébastien Lecornu has good relations with Les Républicains and is quite respected on the left, particularly thanks to his position as Minister of the Armed Forces. He is a man with a sense of negotiation and a sense of state, this source specifies. He is entrusted with a mission that has nothing to do with that of his predecessors, insists the Élysée Palace, which suggests a change of method.

Emmanuel Macron's entourage explains that Michel Barnier and François Bayrou had the merit of broadening the common base by forming an alliance with Les Républicains, but were unable to animate this alliance, which was not supported by a real government contract, according to this source. Sébastien Lecornu received a mission from the President of the Republic to bring together and animate this common base - the central bloc Renaissance, Horizons, the Modem, Les Républicains - to build a real government platform, continues the entourage of the head of state. Sébastien Lecornu is then responsible for turning to the political parties and parliamentary groups willing to discuss with him.

For these discussions, the Élysée Palace has named four groups: the Liot group, the Socialists, the Communists, and the Greens. Sébastien Lecornu is not tasked with building a coalition with these forces, but rather with negotiating a non-censorship agreement based on the government platform he will have previously developed with the Common Core forces.

The head of state's entourage has further emphasized that Sébastien Lecornu is free. But he must act quickly. However, an in-depth discussion is needed. Therefore, there is no deadline or time limit imposed on the new Prime Minister to successfully build this agreement.

The main argument put forward by the head of state's entourage is rather the gravity of the political situation. The Élysée Palace emphasizes that all these political forces have a responsibility to work together given the power of the two radical forces, the National Rally and La France Insoumise. From the Élysée Palace, we don't hear sirens calling for a different policy, but rather for the continuation of the current one.