A councillor at 22, now country’s oldest premier in modern history, the former Brexit negotiator must win over a divided parliament
the UK’s departure from the EU after years of British squabbling over Brexit, and he prefers consensus to political punch-ups. But Michel Barnier faces his toughest challenge yet as France’sThe discreet rightwinger, 73, known for his sensible anoraks, love of spreadsheets and his ever-present briefing dossiers wedged under his arm, is facing a baptism of fire in a deeply divided French political landscape.
In 2021 he stunned observers by lurching significantly to the right and hardening his stance on immigration and security as part of an unsuccessfulAt the time, Barnier claimed that unregulated immigration from outside the EU was weakening France’s sense of identity. He believed the UK’s vote to leave the EU showed the dangers of allowing societal divisions to fester.
Barnier had previously said he wanted to return to a leading role in French politics. After the 2020 post-Brexit agreement was signed with the UK, he said he realised on Christmas Eve that he missed France and wanted to be “useful” in French politics. “I’ve never been a technocrat; I’ve always been a politician,” Barnier said when he tried to become the presidential candidate for the conservative party Les Républicains.
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