Should we celebrate the
“100 days”
milestone ? The question arises regularly in politics. Even more so for the Prime Minister whose lease can be continued or stopped at any time by the President of the Republic. To mark this anniversary, Gabriel Attal, appointed at the beginning of January in place of Élisabeth Borne, was the guest Thursday on the show
“Face à BFM”
for more than two hours on the continuous news channel.
At the end of a regal sequence aimed at combating ultra-violence among the youngest, nine months after the urban riots and following a series of news items - such as that of Grande-Synthe -, the head of government undertook an initial progress report. And this, a few hours after a major speech of firmness in Viry-Châtillon (Essonne) - a town mourning the death of Shemseddine, this 15-year-old teenager beaten up near his college.
A way to regain control. He, who had built his popularity on his determination in matters of authority and his quest for results, is judged in contrasting ways by the French, according to the latest Odoxa Backbone-Consulting survey for
Le Figaro
.
If 48% of those questioned have a good image of the host of Matignon, 69% judge his action negatively in several areas. Particularly on “immigration” (75%) and the priority of “purchasing power” (78%). Youth violence, public deficit, European... The Prime Minister, dynamic and offensive, has above all shown that he does not intend to sit idly by. With in mind...the European elections, which will be held on June 9.
Youth violence: Attal denounces the act of “barbarism” in Grande-Synthe and calls for a “collective start”
After the death of a 22-year-old man, Philippe, victim of a violent attack during the night from Monday to Tuesday in Grande-Synthe (North) - a case in which two minors aged 14 and 15 were arrested -, the Prime Minister sent his
“thoughts for his family, his colleagues”
on Thursday evening .
“We are talking about a man who was clearly tortured
,” said Gabriel Attal, who spoke of an act of
“barbarity”
.
Before urging a
“collective start”
on the thorny issue of youth violence, after the
“civic rearmament”
that Emmanuel Macron had called for during his press conference in January.
“Every time the French hear of a tragedy, behind it are shattered lives,”
insisted the Prime Minister. In this regard, Gabriel Attal read the letter from a young man named Fouad, whose brother, Farid, was the victim of an “inter-neighborhood brawl” in Seine-Saint-Denis.
“The main victims of youth violence are often young people themselves
,” he recalled.
To respond to criticism of inaction, Gabriel Attal repeated it: the government is on task, and has
“rearmed”
the police and the judicial system
“in terms of resources” in recent years.
Willing to see
“how to mitigate the minority excuse and
(put in place)
a system for the immediate appearance of minors” , the head of government wants
“firmer and faster”
responses .
In this sense, he hopes that
“when a young person causes damage, we go after not only the parent of the home
(often the mother)
in which he resides, but both parents. Including the father even though he has been gone for a very long time.”
“An Islamic entryism” which deploys the “precepts of Sharia”
Are these cases of ultraviolence fueled by a religious offensive? In any case, the Prime Minister took advantage of his intervention to denounce the
“Islamic entryism”
present in
“many places in France”. “More or less organized groups”
intend to deploy the
“precepts of sharia, particularly in our schools,”
he criticized. And to recall its flagship measure in terms of secularism: the ban on the abaya at school.
Gabriel Attal also announced that
“the Minister of Justice will issue a criminal circular so that, when you are attacked because you do not respect religious principles, (an aggravating circumstance will be considered, as is the case when someone is attacked). 'one because he has a particular religion.'
A “system” to more easily increase low salaries
While the Prime Minister has made the "de-microcardialization" of France one of his hobbyhorses since his appointment, he said he wanted to develop
"a system"
so that "
it costs less for bosses and employees to increase the salary, especially when you are close to the minimum wage.”
On the question of salaries precisely, Gabriel Attal returned to that of the boss of Stellantis, which could reach 36.5 million euros in 2023. The Prime Minister spoke of
“sums which are shocking, disproportionate, stratospheric for many French people ".
Public deficit: Attal boasts a “credible and serious trajectory”, the commitment to reduce two billion euros in taxes will be “kept”
Faced with public accounts which have deteriorated, due to lack of sufficient revenue, and which have reached the alert level - the deficit objective for 2024 is 5.1% of GDP - the executive is seeking to make 10 billion additional savings.
“We have a credible and serious trajectory”
, boasted Gabriel Attal, who wishes to
“get out of debt”
France.
“As we have less revenue, we have acted on expenditure (...) It is the State which is tightening its belt, our ministries have assumed the responsibility of making efforts,”
the Prime Minister also specified, citing the
“responsibility”
of local authorities and social security.
What about, in this context, Emmanuel Macron's commitment in 2023 to a tax cut of two billion euros for households? According to Gabriel Attal, the promise
“will be kept”
, but conditional on an equivalent economy measure.
“We will be able to maintain (it) by financing it. That means by putting, in front of the two billion, for example a targeted economy that we are doing to be able to make this reduction
,” explained the head of government.
“It’s not the army of clones”: Attal brushes aside rumors of dissension with Le Maire
While rumors of dissension between the Minister of the Economy Bruno Le Maire and the executive couple have raged in recent weeks around a possible amending finance bill, the Prime Minister has brushed aside any disagreement.
“He himself presented our public finance strategy. Whether you have debates within a government, still happy, it's not the clone army. When there are discussions in a government, it’s rather healthy
,” defended Gabriel Attal.
If personalities can express different sensitivities,
“in the end, there is the president and the prime minister who decide”. “I had the chance to work alongside Bruno Le Maire alongside him, I am lucky to have him in my government.”
Europeans: “The most important elections since they existed”
Macronist Valérie Hayer being largely left behind in the polls by Jordan Bardella in the European elections, as shown by the Ifop-Fiducial “rolling” for
Le Figaro,
LCI, and Sud Radio, Gabriel Attal was keen to recall the seriousness of the election. According to him, these are
“the most important elections since they existed”
in 1979.
“No one can believe that we will be stronger by being more alone, with less Europe
,” insisted the Prime Minister, considering that the French
“have not yet entered the European campaign”.
Before mocking the speech of the RN and Reconquête!, supporters of a
“Frexit in pieces”.
Gabriel Attal above all denounced the opposition's desire to nationalize the vote and
“not to talk about Europe”.