Elisabeth Borne appointed Prime Minister to replace Jean Castex

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White smoke at Matignon. After three weeks of waiting, speculation and predictions, the name of the new head of government for Emmanuel Macron’s second term is known. It was Elisabeth Borne, Minister of Labor in the last resigning team of Jean Castex, who was chosen.

A woman from the left

This tenacious technician, considered loyal and hardworking, is perceived by the authorities as having proven herself in government throughout the last five years, from Transport to Labor via Ecology. In addition to the advantage of being a woman, the former chief of staff of Ségolène Royal also has the merit of belonging to the left wing of Macronie, an asset at a time when new social reforms are announced, starting with pensions.

Objective, therefore: to reassure the left wing, and the voters who voted for Emmanuel Macron in the presidential election in this family, without frightening the right, which represents the electoral base of the head of state. Ms. Borne was preferred to another personality, from the right: Catherine Vautrin, former minister of Jacques Chirac, more divisive and against whom there had been an outcry in the majority.

►To re-read: Prime Minister Jean Castex presented the resignation of his government

Élisabeth Borne is the second woman Prime Minister in France’s history after Édith Cresson, who held the post between May 15, 1991 and April 2, 1992. Ms. Borne, whose name had been among the first to circulate, ticked the more boxes in the composite portrait that the Head of State had given for the position: social, productive, environmental fiber.

During his first campaign, in 2017, Mr. Macron had expressed the wish to appoint a woman to Matignon, a strong expectation in public opinion. “Techno” transformed into politics, its new Prime Minister has a solid experience of government machinery.

Emmanuel Macron has also chosen someone who will not overshadow him, observes Valerie Gas, head of the political department of RFI. Ms. Borne is very discreet, to the point that it could have been a handicap for her ascent. This suggests that it is he who will lead the legislative battle.

►Read also: Jean Castex, after Matignon, return to Prades

Elisabeth Borne therefore went through several ministries related to the economy. It carried out various reforms, that of the SNCF in particular, with the opening up of rail transport to competition and the transformation of the status of the company, as recalled by Charlotte Cossetfrom the economy department.

In this position, she says she advocated “social dialogue”, in the face of one of the longest strikes in the history of the SNCF in 2018. She has, in any case, succeeded despite the opposition of the most of the unions – which on the contrary considers it rather stiff –, to carry out the reform of the sector to its end.

An engineer at Matignon

Ms. Borne, originally, is an engineer. She went through the curriculum of the Grandes Ecoles: graduated from the College of Engineers, the National School of Bridges and Roads and the Ecole Polytechnique. She quickly entered the world of work, starting at Sonacotra, as technical director. In 2002, she became Director of Strategy for SNCF, then joined Eiffage five years later. In 2015, she took over as head of the RATP, the transport authority in the Paris region.

In a context of economic crisis, the loss of purchasing power for many French people, several ultra-sensitive files are waiting on his new office in Matignon. In addition to the reform of pensions and that of unemployment insurance, with the disputed tightening of the rules for allocating allowances, the one who has long been close to the Socialist Party assures us: social justice and equal opportunities are the battles of his life. She wants to allow young people to emancipate themselves through work.