Some words from Sébastien Lecornu that could give ideas to Emmanuel Macron. The resigning prime minister seemed to definitively throw in the towel this Wednesday night on France 2, calling for the appointment of a government “completely disconnected from the presidential ambitions of 2027.”
Enough to bring back into the atmosphere the idea of a ministerial technical casting already mentioned on multiple occasions in the summer of 2024 after the dissolution fiasco. But what are we really talking about? The expression technical government has no legal reality.
For example, it does not appear anywhere in the Constitution. In political science, these words allow us to describe a government formed by “people who are not linked to a political party,” as specified in a note from the political research center Sciences-Po.
The hypothesis has been put on the table several times. After the dissolution fiasco in the summer of 2024, the name of Thierry Beaudet, president of the EESC (Economic, Social and Environmental Council), who had never held any political office, was once again on the table.
“Some say that if we have a personality that is not political in the partisan sense, that can change the lines and, ultimately, allow Parliament to move largely towards agreements,” deciphers the historian specializing in the Fifth Republic Jean Garrigue.
In France, at least one case
However, this practice is extremely rare in France. To find a precedent, we must go back to the Third Republic in 1877, with President MacMahon appointing a government of civil servants. Their profiles: “men unrelated to the latest conflicts, independent of all parties,” supposedly must “remain on the margins of political struggles.”
The method then sought to prevent his opponents, who had won the legislative elections, from coming to power. Unfortunately, this government of officials was overthrown a few days later.
We can look to our European neighbors who have already had technical governments on several occasions during the last decade, such as in Belgium. However, comparison is difficult due to a highly fragmented political landscape and relatively strong federal power.
The example in Italy: the Draghi case
The case of Italy can also be mentioned, with a political system closer to ours. In 2021, in the midst of a political and financial crisis linked to the resignation of Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, the Italian head of state proposes Mario Draghi, who has never had any electoral mandate, to replace him.
However, this former banker who worked for Goldman Sachs is not really a neophyte in the corridors of power. Former president of the Bank of Italy, former president of the European Central Bank, who especially managed the subprime mortgage crisis in 2008… This former economics professor has a wide political network on the Italian and international scene. And Mario Draghi may have a technical profile, but he is not really cleaning up the past by becoming head of government.
He thus renews the majority of the outgoing ministers and will look for profiles quite close to his own, appointing, for example, the general director of the Bank of Italy to the Ministry of Finance. The method allows you to obtain a broad coalition.
I am “a grandfather” “at the service of the institutions”, Mario Draghi continues to advocate appearing as a man above the parties. Year after year, the Government endures trying to implement various reforms demanded by Brussels to clean up its economic situation.
“A miracle”
However, 18 months later, Mario Draghi was forced to resign, unable to keep the 5 Star Movement, one of his partners, at his side, once again opening a political crisis. Conclusion: Seen from Italy, technical government is not the panacea to get out of the crisis in which France is mired.
“If we last 18 months, that will allow us to get to the next presidential elections, it would frankly be a miracle given the context and will allow us to avoid overly partisan calculations,” however, defends a Macronist deputy.
By appointing a technical government, Emmanuel Macron could, in fact, bet that a large party in the chamber would agree not to censure an executive without a clear political color.
However, the fact is that the state budget and social security are political options, as demonstrated by the socialists’ request to suspend the pension reform so as not to censure the future government.
“On the contrary, without a political label, don’t you open the doors to censorship in all seats, saying ‘we don’t know this person, we don’t owe him anything?’. I don’t know,” admits an elected LR official.
Matignon “is not the dream” of Laurent Berger
And if Emmanuel Macron embarked on the adventure of a technical government, he would still have to find the casting. In recent months, numerous hypotheses have circulated about Christine Lagarde, president of the ECB whose mandate extends until 2027. However, it is difficult to see in her a figure disconnected from politics when she was minister under Jacques Chirac and then Nicolas Sarkozy.
The name of Laurent Berger also came up. The former head of the CFDT, already contacted in the summer of 2024, has until now always closed the door.
“His dream is not in the ministerial district,” confesses those around him.
The head of state could look for a profile close to that of Jean Castex, then completely unknown to the general public when he was appointed in Matignon. A former collaborator of Nicolas Sarkozy in the Elysée, this senior official met the head of state when he assumed responsibility for the deconfinement strategy linked to Covid-19 in 2020. However, upon coming to power, Jean Castex had chosen a government made up of politicians.
What choice will the head of state make this time? Maybe answer quickly: Emmanuel Macron promised to name a prime minister on Friday night.
Source: BFM TV
