On Tuesday French president Emmanuel Macron chose Gabriel Attal to replace prime minister Élisabeth Borne, who had been dismissed the day before. At the age of 34, the former socialist activist becomes the youngest head of government in France since the start of the Fifth Republic in 1958. Yet as Mediapart's political correspondent Ilyes Ramdani reports, though former education minister Attal is popular with the public, unless there is a change of direction or style in the government his future political path could turn out to be just as impossible as that of his predecessor.
The planned presence of the far-right in Paris this Sunday at a demonstration against anti-Semitism which has been organised by the presidents of the French Parliament's two chambers has left the Right embarrassed and the Left divided. As Ellen Salvi explains, this situation is the direct result of several years of deliberate efforts to create political confusion, fed by Emmanuel Macron and his supporters.
One of France’s oldest existing French press titles, the satirical and investigative weekly Le Canard enchaîné built a reputation as a fearless, irreverent and anti-establishment journal which has recurrently shaken the country’s political class. But it has now turned to the government to validate the disputed dismissal of one of its investigative journalists, following his revelations of a scandal within the weekly itself. Fabrice Arfi, Yunnes Abzouz and Karl Laske report.
A major controversy has erupted in France about the way an education authority responded to the parents of a 15-year-old boy who took his own life after being bullied. Officials claimed the pupil's parents had shown an “unacceptable” approach towards school staff and even threatened legal action for defamation. As Mediapart's Mathilde Goanec reports, this grim episode has raised questions over how the country's local education authorities deal with parental concerns over problems such as bullying. It also raises a wider issue about the role that parents are allowed to have in schools.
The July putsch in Niger has placed France, the former colonial ruler, in an impasse with regard to its use of the country as a base for operations against armed jihadist insurgents in the Sahel region. With around 1,500 troops stationed in Niger, which Paris turned to last year as its principal West African ally after being forced to withdraw its military from neighbouring Mali and Burkina Faso, the outcome of the present standoff with the new junta is uncertain. Rémi Carayol reports on how the explosive situation follows a series of blunders in France’s strategy in West Africa, where its presence has become increasingly unpopular.
After considerable delays, French president Emmanuel Macron and his prime minister Élisabeth Borne, newly re-confirmed in her role, have carried out a government reshuffle. The main theme is the removal of ministers from a civic society background, who were considered too low-profile. They have instead been replaced by more political appointments in the form of Macron loyalists and Parliamentarians. The prime minister and her team hope this will make the government function more effectively. As for any new political impetus, that will have to wait. Political correspondent Ilyes Ramdani reports.
The angry reaction in many disadvantaged districts of France after the shooting of 17-year-old Nahel has once again put police violence back on the political agenda. Lacking any viable response to the unrest, however, the government is simply switching between showing compassion for the teenager and his family, and displaying toughness in the face of disorder. Ilyes Ramdani examines the French government's reaction to the shooting and its aftermath.
From social democrats to the radical Left, leftwing parties in France are embracing or at least debating the concept of ecosocialism. As Mediapart's Mathieu Dejean writes, this collective appropriation of a radical idea that stems from the 1970s marks a new phase in the reconstruction of the French Left as it seeks to find a common view of the world.
This week the publication of a Parliamentary inquiry into foreign interference in France will reveal the close ties between Marine Le Pen's far-right Rassemblement National (RN) and the Russian regime of Vladimir Putin. The party, formerly known as the Front National, was itself responsible for this investigation and chaired the inquiry; on the surface this looks like an attempt at transparency. In reality, it was simply a ploy to try to clear its name, though the party is still furious over the contents of the final report, parts of which have been leaked. Mediapart spent many hours following the hearings conducted by the committee. Here Matthieu Suc and Marine Turchi report on a process that became a charade.
As she accepted the Palme d'Or award at the Cannes Film Festival for her movie 'Anatomie d'une Chute' last weekend, director Justine Triet warned about the growing threats to the cinema industry in France. She said the French government was too indulgent towards American streaming platforms, state support for the film sector was drying up, while cinema audiences are down. The government and its supporters quickly hit back, accusing her of 'ingratitude', as her own film received public grants. But in using her acceptance speech to attack what she sees as a neoliberal assault on France's cinematographic 'cultural exception', Justine Triet was aiming at the right target, says Mediapart's Mathias Thépot. Here he analyses the challenges facing one of France's cultural crown jewels.
