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Michel Barnier

Official portrait, 2024

Prime Minister of France

In office
5 September 2024 – 13 December 2024

President

Emmanuel Macron

Preceded by

Gabriel Attal

Succeeded by

François Bayrou

EU political offices

Head of the UK Task Force
In office 16 November 2019 – 31 March 2021
President	Jean-Claude Juncker Ursula von der Leyen
Deputy	Clara Martínez Alberola
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	João Vale de Almeida (as Ambassador to the United Kingdom)
Chief Negotiator of Task Force 50
In office 1 October 2016 – 15 November 2019
President	Jean-Claude Juncker
Deputy	Sabine Weyand
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	Position abolished
European Commissioner for Internal Market and Services
In office 10 February 2010 – 31 October 2014
President	José Manuel Barroso
Preceded by	Charlie McCreevy
Succeeded by	Elżbieta Bieńkowska
European Commissioner for Regional Policy
In office 16 September 1999 – 31 March 2004
President	Romano Prodi
Preceded by	Monika Wulf-Mathies
Succeeded by	Jacques Barrot
Member of the European Parliament for Île-de-France
In office 14 July 2009 – 10 February 2010
Succeeded by	Constance Le Grip

French political offices

Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries
In office 19 June 2007 – 22 June 2009
Prime Minister	François Fillon
Preceded by	Christine Lagarde
Succeeded by	Bruno Le Maire
Minister of Foreign Affairs
In office 31 March 2004 – 31 May 2005
Prime Minister	Jean-Pierre Raffarin
Preceded by	Dominique de Villepin
Succeeded by	Philippe Douste-Blazy
Minister Delegate for European Affairs
In office 18 May 1995 – 3 June 1997
Prime Minister	Alain Juppé
Preceded by	Alain Lamassoure
Succeeded by	Pierre Moscovici
Minister of the Environment
In office 29 March 1993 – 18 March 1995
Prime Minister	Édouard Balladur
Preceded by	Ségolène Royal
Succeeded by	Corinne Lepage
Senator for Savoie
In office 22 September 1997 – 23 September 1999
In office 2 October 1995 – 31 October 1995
Member of the National Assembly for Savoie
In office 3 April 1978 – 1 May 1993
Preceded by	Maurice Blanc
Succeeded by	Hervé Gaymard
Constituency	2nd (1978–1986) At-large (1986–1988) 2nd (1988–1993)
President of the General Council of Savoie
In office 14 March 1982 – 13 September 1999
Preceded by	Louis Besson
Succeeded by	Hervé Gaymard
General councillor of Savoie for the canton of Bourg-Saint-Maurice
In office 5 September 1973 – 13 September 1999
Preceded by	Alexis Borrel
Succeeded by	Jacqueline Poletti

Personal details

Born

Michel Jean Barnier

9 January 1951 (age 74)
La Tronche, France

Political party

LR (2015–present)

Other political
affiliations

UDR (1967–1976)
RPR (1976–2002)
UMP (2002–2015)

Spouse

Isabelle Altmayer

(m. 1982)

Children

Relatives

Éric and Nicolas Altmayer (brothers-in-law)
René Altmayer (grandfather-in-law)
Victor Joseph Altmayer (great-grandfather-in-law)

Alma mater

ESCP Business School

Occupation

Signature

Michel Jean Barnier (born 9 January 1951) is a French politician. He served as the Prime Minister of France from September to December 2024. He is a member of a political party called LR. Before becoming Prime Minister, Barnier held several important jobs in the French government. He also worked at the European Union (EU) level. From 2010 to 2014, he was a European Commissioner for the Internal Market and Services. He was also the EU's main negotiator for Brexit, which was when Britain left the European Union.

In 2021, Barnier tried to become his party's candidate for the 2022 presidential election. However, he came in third place. In September 2024, President Emmanuel Macron chose him to be Prime Minister. This happened after a special election.

At 73 years old, Barnier was the oldest person to become Prime Minister under France's current government system, the Fifth Republic. His government lost a vote in Parliament on December 4, 2024, and he resigned the next day. His time as Prime Minister was the shortest in the Fifth Republic's history.

Barnier is known as a conservative politician who supports the idea of a strong Europe. He has suggested stricter rules for immigration from outside Europe. He also wants to increase the number of prisons and have mandatory minimum sentences for some crimes.

Early Life and Education
Political Career
Prime Minister of France
Political Ideas
Personal Life
Honours and Awards
- French Honours
- International Honours
See also

Early Life and Education

Michel Jean Barnier was born in La Tronche, France, in 1951. His family supported the ideas of Charles de Gaulle, a famous French leader. His father, Jean Barnier, worked with leather and textiles. His mother, Denise Durand, was a Christian who started a group against road violence. Michel was the youngest of their three sons.

When he was young, Barnier was a scout and sang in a choir. He graduated from the ESCP Business School in 1972. While studying, he was classmates with Jean-Pierre Raffarin, who later became Prime Minister. Barnier was also part of a student group that helped prepare members for political life.

Political Career

National Politics in France

In the 1970s, Barnier worked for different ministers who followed Charles de Gaulle's ideas. In 1978, at age 27, he was elected to the National Assembly. This is like the French Parliament. He represented the Savoie region until 1993. In the 1980s, he voted to end the death penalty in France.

In 1982, Barnier became the youngest president of the departmental council of Savoie. This council manages local affairs. In 1992, he helped organize the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville.

Barnier first joined the French government as Minister of the Environment in 1993. In 1995, President Jacques Chirac made him Minister for European Affairs. He held this job until 1997. Later, he became Foreign Minister from 2004 to 2005. From 2007 to 2009, he was Minister of Agriculture.

European Politics

Official portrait of Barnier as EU Commissioner, 1999

In 2006, Barnier worked as an advisor to José Manuel Barroso, who was the President of the European Commission. He suggested creating a European civil-protection force. From 2006 to 2007, he helped rewrite a European treaty that later became the Treaty of Lisbon.

In 2009, Barnier was elected to the European Parliament. In 2010, he became a European Commissioner for the Internal Market and Services. In this role, he was in charge of making rules for the European banking system. He also worked on creating a single digital market across Europe.

In 2014, Barnier tried to become the President of the European Commission but lost to Jean-Claude Juncker. From 2015, he advised Juncker on defense policy without pay.

Brexit Negotiator

On 27 July 2016, Michel Barnier was chosen to be the European Commission's chief negotiator for Brexit. This was the process of the United Kingdom leaving the European Union. His job was to work out the details of Britain's departure.

From 2019 to 2021, Barnier led the EU team that managed relations with the UK after Brexit. He was the main negotiator for the trade deal between the UK and the EU in 2020.

2022 Presidential Campaign

Barnier at the European People's Party conference in Rotterdam, June 2022

In February 2021, Barnier started a political group within his party to prepare for a possible run in the 2022 French presidential election.

On 27 August 2021, he officially started his presidential campaign. In December, he came in third place in his party's vote. He then supported another candidate, Valérie Pécresse. She was chosen but ended up in fifth place in the actual presidential election. After this, Barnier stepped back from politics for about three years.

Prime Minister of France

After a special election in the summer of 2024, the Prime Minister, Gabriel Attal, resigned. President Emmanuel Macron then appointed Barnier as Prime Minister on 5 September. The time between Attal's resignation and Barnier's appointment was the longest France had gone without a Prime Minister. Barnier was also the oldest Prime Minister in modern French history. Some experts said he was chosen because he could be accepted by different political groups.

As Prime Minister, Barnier faced challenges like forming a new government and getting Parliament to approve the 2025 budget. He said he would continue some of Macron's policies, like not changing the retirement age back to 62. On immigration, he said, "There still is a feeling that our borders are sieves and that migration flows aren't being controlled."

The French Parliament was divided into three main groups. The left-wing group, the New Popular Front, and the far-right National Rally did not support Barnier's appointment. They called for protests against Macron and the new government. Around 110,000 people protested in various cities.

On 2 December 2024, Barnier used a special rule in the French Constitution to pass the Social Security budget for 2025 without a vote in Parliament. This led both the New Popular Front and the National Rally to try to remove his government.

On 4 December, most members of Parliament voted to remove Barnier's government. This was the first time a French government lost a vote of no confidence since 1962.

Political Ideas

Barnier speaking about Brexit in the European Parliament in January 2019

After he became Prime Minister in 2024, the BBC described Barnier as a "committed, patriotic conservative." In July 2024, Barnier said France's biggest problems were immigration, public finances, and rebuilding its industries and farms. When he became Prime Minister, he listed his main goals as education, security, and controlling immigration.

During his 2021 presidential campaign, Barnier said he would support a public vote on making immigration laws stricter. He also said he wanted to "stop non-European immigration for three to five years." He proposed to limit family reunification and reduce the number of foreign students. He also suggested building 20,000 more prison spaces and having mandatory minimum sentences for some crimes.

On money matters, Barnier's ideas are similar to Emmanuel Macron's. He supports reducing taxes and business rules. As a presidential candidate, he suggested cutting production taxes by €10 billion. He also wanted to raise the retirement age from 62 to 65 and make the work week longer.

Barnier is known for supporting the idea of a strong European Union and also supports NATO. In 1981, he voted to end the death penalty in France.

Personal Life

Barnier has been part of the International Olympic Committee's group that looks at how the Olympics affect the environment and local areas. He is also on the board of a group called Friends of Europe, which is a research organization in Brussels. In 2021, he published a book called My Secret Brexit Diary. It's about the EU's talks with the UK during Brexit.

In 1982, Barnier married Isabelle Altmayer, who is a lawyer. They have three children. In October 2024, Barnier had surgery for a neck problem.

Honours and Awards

French Honours

Officer of the Legion of Honour
Commander of the Order of Agricultural Merit
Commander of the Order of Maritime Merit

International Honours

Knight Commander of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany ( Germany)
Commander's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland ( Poland)
Grand Cross of the Order of Prince Henry ( Portugal)
Grand Officer of the Military Order of Christ ( Portugal)
Commander of the Order of the Star ( Romania)
Cross of the Order of Merit of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta ( Sovereign Military Order of Malta)
Medal of the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( Uruguay)