France's new PM deadlock: New names emerge but still no nomination

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00:00Claire, let's talk then about names for Prime Minister because we understand that the President

00:08is sounding out his shortlist today and is trying to work out who actually might get

00:14the support of Parliament.

00:18That's right, the French President Emmanuel Macron is testing the waters, he's speaking

00:23we understand by telephone mostly today with the leaders, the heavyweights across the political

00:29spectrum in the French Parliament trying to work out who on his shortlist of candidates

00:35to be the next French Prime Minister would get the support of Parliament because if Emmanuel

00:41Macron were to name someone who doesn't have the support of Parliament, well that person

00:45would be voted out by members of Parliament before he or she had even begun the job and

00:52Emmanuel Macron doesn't want that.

00:53He would like to name someone who would be able to get the support of Parliament.

00:56We've had a lot of focus today on Xavier Bertrand, he's a key figure in the right of

01:01French politics but from what we understand the far right, the Marine Le Pen's party,

01:06has said they will not support a Bertrand government so that would make it very difficult

01:11for him to get the support of Parliament that he needs to survive a possible no-confidence

01:16vote.

01:17We're also hearing of course talk of Bernard Cazeneuve, former socialist Prime Minister

01:21but he left the socialist party several years ago.

01:24It's unclear how much support he would get from the left wing, we know the far left,

01:29the La France Insoumise party have said they would not support a government run by Bernard

01:34Cazeneuve.

01:35That leaves Thierry Baudet, his name emerged just yesterday on Monday, totally unknown

01:40to the French public.

01:42He at the moment runs a council which advises the government on social, environmental and

01:47economic policy.

01:49He would be a technocratic choice, not affiliated to any political parties.

01:53That could be seen as a strength or it could be seen as a weakness because of course whoever

01:57becomes the next French Prime Minister is going to need to do some serious politics

02:02to unite what is a very divided House of Parliament in France.

02:06And Claire, it is worth reiterating that the clock is really ticking to find a Prime Minister

02:11isn't it because there's the deadline to get next year's budget looked at and now we've

02:17had the economy minister as well, Bruno Le Maire, warning that action needs to be taken

02:22on the deficit too.

02:26Certainly we heard from Bruno Le Maire, he has come out, of course he's the outgoing

02:30minister because he and the rest of the government have been asked to stay on as kind of caretakers

02:36over the summer waiting for Emmanuel Macron to name the next Prime Minister and then that

02:40next set of ministers will be named afterwards.

02:43Bruno Le Maire saying that 16 billion euros worth of savings, cuts to the budget, need

02:49to be made now to redress the situation.

02:52We understand that France's public deficit could go up to 5.6% of GDP which is higher

02:58than had been expected.

03:01Bruno Le Maire says he will tell whoever becomes the next Prime Minister that he wants those

03:06and he believes those kinds of savings need to be made.

03:10Action needs to be taken quickly.

03:12Those savings need to be made but it depends really on whoever the next Prime Minister

03:16is, what kind of action, what kind of measures they take up but what's clear is they're going

03:20to have to move really, really fast because the next budget for 2025 is scheduled to be

03:26debated on in the National Assembly, in the lower house of parliament in October but it's

03:31pretty hard to draw up a draft budget when the political situation here in France is

03:37still completely in limbo.

03:40Claire Paquelin, outside the Elysee Palace, good to talk to you.

03:43Thanks very much.

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