The French neopremier meets the institutions between the protests of the “we block everything”: 200,000 in the square, clashes and 675 arrests throughout France
While the protests continue in the background, the tour de force of the new French prime minister, Sébastien Lecornu, began: since yesterday he started the meetings with political forces to find “agreements” that guarantee to preserve France’s institutional stability “.
Institutional meetings
From 8:00 this morning, the neopremier continued political consultations. Bilaterals with the president of the National Assembly, Yaël Braun-Pivet, and the president of the Senate, Gérard Larcher, were included in the Lecornu agenda, while the oppositions will be received later.
Yaël Braun-Pivet, sharing a photo in which it is with the prime minister, wrote on X: «Our country is going through a period of immense challenges. The French expect us to unite our forces rather than emphasize our differences ». But he specified that “it is up to the prime minister to create this dynamic and belongs to deputies the task of overcoming divisions”.
Larcher, who will meet Lecornu later, has already declared that he has “welcomed his appointment”.
The first political reactions
The warning by the premier on the need “of radical changes, not only in form and in the method, but also in substance” does not seem to have played on the French people, who would have welcomed him “with coldness”: to reveal it is an ODOXA-Backbone survey for Le Figaro.
The reactions to the appointment multiply. If yesterday Marine Le Pen called it “the last cartridge of macronism” and Jean-Luc Mélenchon “a sad comedy”, today was the turn of other political exponents.
Raphaël Glucksmann of Place Publique commented: «It is from 7 July 2024 that the President of the Republic thinks he is still having the majority. It is time for the opposite. ” For the socialist Boris Vallaud, although open to dialogue, “the appointment of Sébastien Lecornu is a disappointment”, given his loyalty to Emmanuel Macron. He stressed that “the presidential field was defeated in the polls” and that “the French are waiting for a change”.
The protests of the “we block everything”
The Elisha must also cope with the protests: yesterday the participation in the “we block everything” passed the forecasts, with almost 200,000 people in the square.
The Ministry of the Interior spoke of “596 rallies” and “253 blocks” which brought together “197,000 participants”. According to the last bulletin, 675 people ended up in handcuffs, of whom 280 only in Paris.
The processions affected the whole country: from Marseille to Nantes, from Bordeaux to Rennes, to Paris. The inconveniences affected the transport sector: 110 flights erased and stops the trains in the ille-de-French and in the South-West. Between Toulouse and Auch suspended the railway service for “Avoid acts”, while there have been “attempts to invade different stations” including the Du Nord of Paris, Marseille and Montpellier.
At Gare du Nord the police collided with the protesters, while in Marseille he used tear gas. In the Paris region, in front of some mosques, pork heads were found: the prosecutor reported that they are “foreign citizens who immediately left the country”.
Disorders also today
The aftermath of the protests made themselves heard today. At 6:00 in the morning some demonstrators gathered in Grenoble, while in front of the Sciences Po campus there were disorders: 60 hooded students blocked access with garbage cans and waved strips against Macron.
On X, the Minister of the Interior Bruno Retailleau thanked “Gendarmes, policemen, firefighters and state officials who faced the violence with great professionalism and effectiveness, while guaranteeing the freedom to express”.
