Gabriel Attal’s resignation could be accepted this week, Tuesday at the end of the Council of Ministers, or even Wednesday. Once his resignation has been accepted, he will be at the head of a resigning government, which implies several specificities.
The divorce seems to be complete between Emmanuel Macron and Gabriel Attal. The Prime Minister has already submitted his resignation on Monday, July 8, the day after the legislative elections and the defeat of the presidential camp, but Emmanuel Macron refused it, leaving the head of government with all his powers. The latter will therefore have to submit his resignation once again, when an alliance has been found, so that it is accepted and makes the Prime Minister and his government resign. The ministers will therefore see their functions limited to the strict minimum, but will find some of them in other institutions, notably in the National Assembly.
Please note that the President of the Republic has not specified the date until which Gabriel Attal will retain his prerogatives as Prime Minister, even if the deadline of July 18 is looming for the government to resign. In other words, the deadline for the constitution of new groups in the National Assembly. On the other hand, the government in place, although resigning, could well be set to stay. Indeed, “The Olympic Games are coming and we will stay like this until the end of August… It’s going to be really shaky” agrees an advisor to TF1. If this potential resigning government will not have a political function, it could manage current affairs, at least until the start of the school year, and why not until the beginning of October, the time for the new government team to be put in place after the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
What can and cannot a resigning government do?
A resigning government is destined to leave to make way for a new ministerial team, but it remains in place until the latter is appointed. There is therefore a period of time between the submission and acceptance of the resignation of the Prime Minister and his government and the arrival of their replacements: it is during this period, which generally lasts between a few days and a few weeks, that the resigning government is in place. It then ensures only “current affairs” – hence the other name of the resigning government – to “ensure, in the name of continuity, the minimal functioning of the State” explained Claire Landais, the secretary general of the government, in a vade-mecum to the ministries reports Politico.
The Prime Minister and his resigning government are therefore deprived of the functions they previously performed, such as passing a reform by decree, proposing a bill, changing a regulation or launching a plan. The resigning government also escapes meetings such as the Council of Ministers since no decision-making is possible. Above all, because it is promised to leave, a resigning government cannot be targeted by a motion of censure, unlike a government with full prerogatives.
Changes for deputy ministers
Ministers therefore lose the interest in their function when a government resigns, but those who are deputies in addition to being members of the government can also find advantages within the National Assembly. In particular, they can claim and weigh in when assigning positions of responsibility in the hemicycle such as the presidency of the Assembly or those of the various committees, something that is impossible for them as long as they are part of the executive.
These key elections for the National Assembly must take place after the constitution of all the groups, i.e. from July 18. This detail, coupled with the fact that from its first meeting, also set for July 18, the hemicycle can file a motion of censure against the government, could push Emmanuel Macron to make the government resign before this date. He would spare himself the overthrow of a government that he knows must be replaced and he could allow his camp to count on the votes of the 18 ministers deputies when allocating positions in the Assembly, and therefore be better represented.