The french government of prime minister François Bayrou

The new french government  was installed on 23 december 2024, the first government meeting is announced for 3rd january 2025. Some official websites and official biographies are still being updated.

Continue to check this article during the next weeks, as there will be updates of its content.

The french president Emmanuel Macron

The french president is not a formal member of the government, but it’s interesting to add his profile to this article. The president nominates the prime minister and the other members of government, according to article 8 of the french consitution.

Emmanuel Macron (*1977), who graduated from the french elite school ENA (école nationale de l’administration) worked in the finance sector before he started to work for the former president François Hollande in 2012. From 2014 to 2016 he had been minister for economy, since 2017 he is the french chief of state.

Macron had been a member of the french socialist party from 2006 until 2009 (according to an article of Le Figaro from 2015). In 2016 he created the movement « En marche » whose name was later changed in « Renaissance Party ».

The prime minister François Bayrou

Mister Bayrou was born in 1951. After a diploma in classic literature he became a teacher and worked as well on the farm of his parents.

The former minister for education from 1993 to 1997 was already in a government under Emmanuel Macron : in 2017 he became minister of justice, but resigned after about 40 days, due to an affair concerning suspected fictitious employment of EU-delegates of the Modem party. The respective legal procedure is not closed so far : Bayrou was discharged by the Tribunal Correctionnel in Paris in february 2024, but as the prosecutor made an appeal there will be a new process (last update: december 2024). 

According to the biography on the website of his MODEM party he admires the philosopher Lanza del Vasto, a student of Gandhi. The same biography mentions his opposition to president Sarkozy’s return of France in the military command of the NATO.

Since 13 december 2024 Francois Bayrou is prime minister of France.   

He is already the fourth prime minister in 2024, after Elisabeth Borne, Gabriel Attal and Michel Barnier (who resigned after a motion of censure by the french parliament).

Mister Bayrou is assisted by the delegate minister for relations with the parliament Patrick Mignola and the delegate minister for equality of men and women Aurore Bergé.

According to an article of the french news media BFM TV from january 2025, the Court Of Justice of The Republic (Cour de justice de la république) leads an investigation for false testimony concerning Miss Bergé. There is the suspicion of false testimony in front of a fact-finding commission concerning private nursery schools. Miss Bergé is to be presumed innoncent for the moment.

The government spokesperson is Sophie Primas.

The french minister of the Interior : Bruno Retailleau

Retailleau (*1960) has diplomas in economy and political science. A leading politician of the party „Les Républicains“ (labelled as conservative), he is expected to apply a strict policy concerning immigration and security. Retailleau was already appointed by Bayrou’s predecessor Michel Barnier in september 2024. The french ministry of the interior has as well the delegate minister François Noël Buffet.

The minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs : Jean-Noël Barrot

Barrot (*1983), a member of the Modem-Party (of prime minister Bayrou), has teached economy in prestigious universities : the MIT-Institute in Massachusetts and HEC Paris. After 5 years as member of the french parliament, he became delegate minister for digitalisation and for Europe from 2022 to 2024.

The french minister for foreign affairs  has three delegate ministers on his side :

Benjamin Haddad (in charge of european affairs), Laurent Saint-Martin (in charge of international commerce and French living abroad) and Thani Mohamed Soilihi (in charge of frenchspeaking countries and international partnerships).

The minister for economy : Eric Lombard

The full name of this department of the cabinet of France is « Ministry for economy, finance, industrial and digital sovereignty ».

Eric Lombard was born in 1958 and holds a diploma in economy (HEC Paris). In the early 1990ies, he worked as counsellor for the french government, but the biggest part of his career so far was spent in the finance sector. On 11 september 2001 he had planified an appointment in the World Trade Center in New York, but it got cancelled.

The big ministry has as well 5 delegate ministers :

Amélie de Montchalin is in charge of public accounts. She held already government positions since 2019 as state secretary for Europe, minister for public service and minister for ecology.

Marc Ferracci is in charge of industry and energy. Véronique Louwagie works in the areas commerce and SME (small and medium size companies).

Clara Chapaz is responsible for Artificial Intelligence and Digital Affairs. Nathalie Delattre is managing tourism.

The minister for justice: Gérald Darmanin

From 2017 to 2024, Darmanin (*1982) had already been minister for public accounts and minister of the interior. He initiated a new migration law that entered into force in january 2024 

The law, which allows the regularisation of clandestine workers for certain jobs, but as well the easier repatriation of criminal migrants, triggered intense discussions and actions of the constitutional council of France (it censored 35 of 86 proposed articles).

The new minister of justice  has studied political science. The former president Sarkozy is considered to be a mentor of this politician of the party « Les républicains ».

The minister for labor, health, solidarity and families : Catherine Vautrin

Trained as a lawyer, Catherine Vautrin (*1960) was a member of french « right » parties (UMP, Les Républicains) for a long time, before she switched to Macron’s party « Renaissance ». TV5 Monde calls her a « liberal follower of Sarkozy «.

Her track record contains in particular one decade as marketing director for an american company, positions as secretary of state during the years 2000, and the vice-presidency of the french national parliament.

The french ministry of labour  under Catherine Vautrin, is a grouping of the ministries for labour and health.  

The minister for labour : Astrid Panoysan-Bouvet

There is no official CV on the homepage of the ministry so far (25 december 2024). An article of the french journal « Nouvel Obs » from september 2024 gives closer infos on Miss Panoysan-Bouvet.

After her studies of political science she worked for insurance and real estate companies. According to the Nouvel Obs she was initially a member of the socialist party. In 2014 she started to work as an adviser for Emmanuel Macron (who was minister for economy back then), in 2016 she was a cofounder of Macron’s party « En Marche (Renaissance) ». The daughter of an armenian father and a norwegian mother is considered to have a social democratic and liberal approach to political questions.

The minister for Health : Yannick Neuder

Where is the official biography of the new french minister for health, Yannick Neuder (*1969) ?  Still in april 2025 the official homepage of the french ministry for health says : the biography is coming soon …

Mister Neuder is assisted by a delegate minister for autonomy and handicapped persons, Miss Charlotte Parmentier-Lecocq.

The german minister for health, Karl Lauterbach, confirmed in 2023 the existence of shocking side effects of Covid vaccines. It will be interesting to learn from the french minister for health, if there are such side effects in France too.

In april 2025, the ministers Yannick Neuder, Catherine Vautrin and Elisabeth Borne, are targeted by a complaint of the lawyer Christelle Mazza, concerning „institutional mobbing“ of health care staff in France. The difficult working conditions in french hospitals are criticized since about 2012, and there have even been suicides of physicians and nurses at their workplace. French jurisdiction has already recognized the existence of „Institutional mobbing“ in an affair of the telecom company „Orange“ (previous name: France Télécom). The lawyer Christelle Mazza leans her action on this jurisprudence. As this time government ministers are targeted, a special court – the „Cour de Justice de la République (CJR)“ – must decide, if this criminal complaint will be accepted for a further investigation by a prosecutor. The decision of the CJR is awaited for the 14 june 2025.

The minister for defence : Sébastien Lecornu

Mister Lecornu studied law and held various higher political positions since 2008. In 2020, he became minister for the french overseas territories, and since 2022 he is minister for defence.

The french ministry for defence  has as well a delegate minister for veterans, Miss Patricia Miralles.

The minister for overseas territories : Manuel Valls

The current head of the ministry for overseas territories is an interesting man.

First, Manuel Valls was already a high profile member of government : under the former president François Hollande he was minister of the interior and prime minister.

Second, he has been an active politician both in France and in Spain. Manuel Valls (*1962), the son of a spanish father and a swiss mother, got his french citizenship only at the age of 20. In 2019, he tried to become mayor of Barcelona, but succeeded only in becoming a member of the city council. The irregular financial conditions of his spanish campaign brought him a condemnation for illegal financing with a fine of 277 000 EUR.

Third, Mister Valls left the socialist party in 2017 to join the new party of Emmanuel Macron (En Marche/ Renaissance).

Fourth, Mister Valls, who was prime minister back then, said in january 2015 to french students :

« You must learn to live with the risk of terror attacks. « (Manuel Valls, Prime Minister of France, january 2015)

The attack against the journal « Charlie Hebdo » had happened before Valls’ phrase in january 2015. The attack of the Bataclan Theatre happened in november 2015.

The management of the french overseas territories is challenging. In 2024, there were violent riots in New Caledonia and a massive tornado in Mayotte.

The minister for agriculture : Annie Genevard

Miss Genevard (*1956), although being one of the presidents of the party « Les républicains » in 2024, had only a modest media presence until she became minister.  The teacher for French and Latin is described by the journal Nouvel Obs as a « right hardliner ».

The full name of the french ministry for agriculture  is « Ministry for agriculture and alimentary sovereignty ».

The minister for Ecology : Agnès Pannier-Runacher

Miss Pannier-Runacher is the head of the french ministry for ecology  , which includes as well the political responsibility for forests, the sea and fishing.

The member of the Macron-Party « En Marche/ Renaissance » is a graduate of the renowned ENA university in France. Her professional career covers activities as finance auditor and manager for the french tourism group « Comapgnie des Alpes ». Since 2018 she worked in government positions as secretary of state, delegate minister, or minister for energy (2022 – 2024).

The minister for Education : Elisabeth Borne

Elisabeth Borne (*1961) is the former french prime minister of the years 2022 to 2024. According to Radio France  her father was a russian jew and  a member of the french Résistance during World War II. After her engineering studies she worked as advisor for the socialist ministers Jack Land and Lionel Jospin. She worked as well in high management positions for the french transport companies SNCF and RATP.

Miss Borne is a member of Macron’s party « Renaissance (before : En marche) » and has held several minister positions since Macron became president in 2017.

The politician participated in a reform of the unemployment insurance that brought stricter rules for jobseekers. When she was prime minister, she used 23 times the constitutional article 49.3, which allows to implement a law without the approval of the parliament.

The ministry of education in France  has as well a delegate minister, Philippe Baptiste.

The minister for culture : Rachida Dati

Born in 1965, Miss Dati holds masters in economy and law. Her biography on the government website info.gouv.fr mentions, that she worked as auxiliary nurse (« during the day and during the night ») from 1982 to 1987, before she became an accountant with the french oil company Elf Acquitaine from 1987 to 1990. From about 1995 to 2005 she moved between employments at french courts and advisor roles in french ministries.

Under president Nicolas Sarkozy, with whom shed had already worked for several years, she became minister for justice. Her next stations were a seat in the EU Parliament and the position as mayor for one district of Paris. When she decided to become the french minister for culture in 2024 (initially under prime minister Gabriel Attal), she was excluded from her party « Les Républicains ».

In november 2024, Le Figaro informed that a specialised investigative authority concerning financial crimes, the french Parquet National Financier, is investigating concerning Miss Dati. Between 2010 and 2012 the politician got allegedly 900 000 EUR for consulting services from a subsidiary of Renault-Nissan. There is the question, if this amount was used for lobbying in the EU Parliament. The politician contests these suspicions and is to be presumed innocent.

In april 2025, french newspapers informed that Miss Dati did allegedly omit to mention jewelry with a wort of 420 000 EUR in her official private assets declaration. This financial statement (called « déclaration HATVP ») is compulsory for high ranking politicians in France, and it can be consulted publicly.

Miss Dati, who holds the double nationality of France and Morocco, criticised the migration politics of the former german chancellor Angela Merkel. After an attack of a right wing extremist in Hanau/ Germany in 2020, Miss Dati said that Merkel « is now paying a high price for the massive opening of the borders ».

The minister for Territory Management and Decentralisation : François Rebsamen

Mister Rebsamen was born in 1951, his family name is the german word for grape seed. When he studied economy and law, he was associated with the Communists (Ligue communiste révolutionnaire), but then he joined the socialist party. The former mayor of the city of Dijon and former minister for labour under president François Hollande decided to support Emmanuel Macron as presidential candidate in 2022. He even created a new party, La Fédération Progressiste, which is described as « left, universalist, proeuropean, reforming «  by TF1 Info.

There are as well 2 delegate ministers in the french ministry for territory management : Juliette Méadel (in charge of urbanisation, she is a member of the Rebsamen-party « Fédération Progressiste » too), and Françoise Gatel (in charge of Rural Affairs, a member of the “centre-right-party” UDI) .

The minister for housing : Valérie Letard  

The head of the french housing ministry is a member of the « centre-right-party » UDI too. Miss Letard was born in 1962 and has a diploma as social worker. She had several political positions in the north of France and was state secretary for solidarity and green technologies under president Sarkozy. One of the questions the politician will have to treat is the evolution of the french SRU law (loi solidarité et renouvellement urbain), which defines to each municipality a certain number of social apartments.

The minister for Transportation : Philippe Tabarot                         

Philippe Tabarot (*1970) is born into a family with political importance. Around 1960, his father Robert Tabarot was one of the leaders of the OAS organisation in Algeria (Organisation de l’armée secrète, english : Secret Army Organization), which was considered as a terrorist group by Charles de Gaulle, as is reported by the news portal BFMTV.

The qualification of this chapter of the history of France and Algeria triggers many questions. The sister of Philippe Tabarot, Michèle Tabarot (from the party « Les Républicains ») supported a law proposal to present to french pupils the « positive role of France’s presence in North Africa ».

Philippe Tabarot (he is a member of « Les Républicains » as well) was already in charge of transport questions when he was vice-president of the regional parliament in Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, before he became a member of the french senate (the second chamber of the french parliament) in 2020.

Important questions that the minister will have to deal with are : the security in public transport means, green transport technologies, the management of strikes of personnel from train and airline companies (which are quite frequent in France).

Since 2021 there is an investigation concerning potential defalcation of public funds against Mister Tabarot. He is to be presumed innocent for the moment (last update : january 2025).

The minister for Public Service : Laurent Marcangeli 

The former minister (Guillaume Kasbarian) had installed an austerity package of 2 billion EUR, by eliminating primes and increasing the unpaid period of a sick leave from 1 to 3 days. These measures led to demonstrations of public service agents in early december 2024.

The new head of the ministry for public service was nominated at the end of december 2024.

Mister Marcangeli (*1980) is a lawyer and member of Horizons (a « centre right party » founded by the former prime minister Edouard Philippe). Previously, he has been the mayor of Ajaccio in Corsica and a member of the french parliament.

The minister for sports : Marie Barsacq      

The full name of this governmental department is « ministry for sports, young people and associations ».

Marie Barsacq (*1973) was already a member of the organisation committee for the Olympic Summer Games 2024 in France.

As french sports minister she will be in charge as well of the preparation of the Olympic Winter Games 2030 in France.

Miss Barsacq is a lawyer who worked for a long time for french sports institutions such as the french football federation (FFF Fédération Française de Football).

Blog Article : How does Leopold Stoeger vote?