1 week ago PM denies small boat plans are ‘in tatters’ as ministers urge new French tactics

Sir Keir is expected to speak to French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday.

Politics

1 week ago World's nuclear industry to descend on Scotland on day one of a Labour government

Torness and Hunterston are both being earmarked as potential sites for new nuclear power stations in Scotland.

Politics

1 week ago It’s all change for Monaco as they host Spurs in the Champions League

The club’s new 38-year-old manager Sébastien Pocognoli has to improve results, change the team’s style and integrate new players – all during an injury crisisBy Get French Football NewsTime is a precious commodity that has been in short supply for Sébastien Pocognoli. The precocious 38-year-old has not needed much of it to forge a reputation as one of the most promising young managers in the game, but he has had to maximise every second since joining Monaco as he plots a course through the chaos.His first training session with his new players, last Tuesday, was a microcosm of the job at hand for the man who led Union Saint-Gilloise to their first Belgian title since 1935 last season. “In the first training session, there was too much intensity. It was pretty chaotic. I had to calm them down,” said Pocognoli, who nonetheless insists on “intensity” and set the tone himself, physically grappling with his new players as he took part in the drills as the sun set on the club’s performance...

Sport

2 w. ago Sixteen people deported to France under returns deal in single flight

The total number now deported under the deal is 42, while 23 have arrived from France.

Economics

2 w. ago Broken promises and political crises: how Emmanuel Macron fell from French favour

The president is seen to have accelerated the financial crisis, social inequalities and the rise of the far rightEurope live – latest updatesThree French governments have collapsed in less than a year, and the political crisis looks likely to continue, overshadowing Emmanuel Macron’s last 18 months in power and his domestic legacy.This week, the latest minority government narrowly survived its first vote of no confidence. But it remains the weakest cabinet in decades and could be toppled at any moment if opposition parties join together to oust it. France faces a brutal two-month battle in parliament to achieve what once seemed the most basic element of governance: passing a budget. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago The crisis engulfing Emmanuel Macron contains a warning for Keir Starmer | Rafael Behr

The French president dominated the centre ground but has failed to build a legacy there. Labour is in danger of doing the sameBritain and France do not share a fixed quota of political stability such that reduced volatility on one side of the Channel causes chaos across the water. It was just a coincidence that Keir Starmer won a huge majority at precisely the moment last July when legislative elections made France ungovernable for Emmanuel Macron.It was a misfortune for both men, and for Europe, that their political trajectories were out of sync. Macron had dealt with four Tory prime ministers before finding a potential ally in the ascendant Labour leader. By then his presidency was in spiralling decline. Britain was rousing itself from Brexit delirium just as France was losing the plot.Rafael Behr is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

Events

2 w. ago The handshake is back: Trump’s aggressive embrace returns with Macron and UAE leader he praises for ‘unlimited money’

The French and US leaders engaged in what appeared to be an uncomfortable 26-second handshake in Egypt

Politics

2 w. ago Emmanuel Macron: I won’t resign, I was elected ‘to serve, to serve, and to serve’

Sebastien Lecornu will face a no-confidence vote this week after being reappointed

Politics

2 w. ago Macron accuses rivals of fuelling instability as he dismisses calls to resign

French president says opposition has not ‘risen to the moment’ after reappointment of Sébastien Lecornu as PMThe French president, Emmanuel Macron, has accused rival political parties of fuelling instability in France, as he brushed aside calls by the opposition for him to resign amid France’s worst political crisis in decades.“Many of those who have fuelled division and speculation have not risen to the moment,” Macron said of French opposition parties, as he arrived in Egypt on Monday to attend a summit on Gaza. He said rival “political forces” were “solely responsible for this chaos” after they “instigated the destabilisation” of the prime minister, Sébastien Lecornu. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago French political crisis continues as Macron blames rivals for ‘sense of disorder’– Europe live

President, attending Gaza summit in Egypt, reiterates he will not step down as opponents lodge no-confidence motions in the governmentNational Assembly president Yaël Braun-Pivet has welcomed the appointment of Sébastien Lecornu’s new government, calling for calm and constructive debate as parliament prepares to convene.“Our institutions are strong and now ready to work in the interests of the French people,” Braun-Pivet said on social media. “Posturing and political manoeuvring must give way to constructive discussion before the National Assembly. Let the parliamentary debate begin!” Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago French political crisis continues as Lecornu unveils new government – Europe live

Marine Le Pen says she will seek to call a no-confidence motion as she urges Macron to dissolve the National AssemblySpeaking from Egypt, French president Emmanuel Macron dismissed opposition calls for his resignation, insisting he would remain in office to safeguard the country’s stability.“Never forget that the mandate given by the French people is to serve, to serve and serve, and to provide answers to the questions of everyday French people, and to do everything possible for the independence of France,” Macron told reporters in Sharm el-Sheikh. “That is the only thing that matters. The rest is the government’s business I will continue to ensure stability,” he added. Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago France is not alone in its political crisis – belief in a democratic world is vanishing | Simon Tisdall

The populist right offers a solution in the form of turning back the clock. Macron and his counterparts need to find a different answer fastEmmanuel Macron sounded like a man in grief. Not angry, not defiant, just a little triste. Europe, he lamented, was suffering a “degeneration of democracy”. Many threats emanated from outside, from Russia, from China, from powerful US tech companies and social-media entrepreneurs, France’s president said. “But we should not be naive. On the inside we are turning on ourselves. We doubt our own democracy We see everywhere that something is happening to our democratic fabric. Democratic debate is turning into a debate of hatred.”Squeezed between vituperative extremes of right and left, Macron knows of what he speaks. But “ungovernable” France is not alone in its bitter, intractable divisions. Across Europe, in the UK and the US, distrust and grievance daily deepen political dysfunction and social discord. Macron’s words apply, in fact, to almost an...

Politics

3 w. ago Emmanuel Macron’s political turmoil isn’t just bad news for France

Editorial: The consequences of the president’s weakness will be felt beyond France’s borders – with Vladimir Putin the main winner

Politics

3 w. ago Inside Macron’s political crisis as French government descends into farce: ‘An extraordinary tragicomedy’

The resignation of prime minister Sebastien Lecornu , and his subsequent reappointment, is the latest chapter in France’s ongoing political turmoil. Analysts tell James C. Reynolds that the rot may be too deep for President Emmanuel Macron to fix

Politics

3 w. ago Macron summons parties for crunch meeting in frantic effort to appoint PM

All parties except National Rally and La France Insoumise called on by president to show ‘collective responsibility’Europe live – latest updatesEmmanuel Macron has summoned the leaders of several political parties to his office to demand they show “collective responsibility” as he attempts to appoint a new prime minister amid a deepening political crisis.All political parties except Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally, which is the biggest single opposition party, and Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s leftwing La France Insoumise were called to the meeting at the presidential palace before Macron’s self-imposed deadline to name a new prime minister by Friday night. Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago The Guardian view on political chaos in France: the gift that keeps on giving to Marine Le Pen and the far right | Editorial

Influential abroad, Emmanuel Macron’s strategic errors at home are bringing mainstream French politics into disrepute at a crucial momentIn Jean-Paul Sartre’s 1944 play No Exit, hell is portrayed as a locked room in which characters are condemned to fall out and squabble for all eternity. Ever since foolishly calling a snap election which delivered a deadlocked and divided national assembly, the French president, Emmanuel Macron, has found himself trapped in a modern political version of the same plot.On Monday morning, the third prime minister Mr Macron has appointed in just over a year became the latest to throw in the towel, after only 27 days in the job. Hours after unveiling his ministerial team, Sébastien Lecornu stood down following a backlash from centre-right allies, who objected to the number of carryovers from François Bayrou’s previous administration. By Monday evening, Mr Macron had persuaded Mr Lecornu to conduct a round of last-ditch negotiations to try to resolv...

Politics

3 w. ago Emmanuel Macron faces calls to step down after French PM resigns

The French president faces another political crisis as his closest allies seek to distance themselves

Politics

3 w. ago Macron under pressure to call snap parliamentary elections or resign

French president’s former allies join opponents in demanding he act to end a spiralling political crisisFrance’s president, Emmanuel Macron, is under intense pressure to call snap parliamentary elections or resign as former allies join his opponents in demanding he act to end a spiralling political crisis in the EU’s second biggest economy.Macron’s first prime minister on Tuesday urged the president to step down amid mounting frustration even within the president’s own camp over one of the worst spells of political chaos in France since the foundation of its Fifth Republic in 1958. Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago Macron should announce early election, says former PM as France’s political crisis deepens

Édouard Philippe, a contender to succeed Macron, says situation is ‘distressing’ amid last-ditch efforts to get cross-party support for cabinetEurope live – latest updatesÉdouard Philippe, a former French prime minister and one-time ally of Emmanuel Macron, has said he favours early presidential elections given the gravity of the political crisis rocking the country.The remarks by Philippe, a leading centre-right contender to succeed Macron, came as the outgoing prime minister, Sébastien Lecornu, began a last-ditch effort to rally cross-party support for a cabinet to pull France out of its deepening political deadlock. Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago France’s PM resigns after less than a month amid widespread criticism of new cabinet

Sébastien Lecornu resigns after Emmanuel Macron unveiled largely unchanged cabinet lineupFrance’s president, Emmanuel Macron, accepted the resignation of the prime minister, Sébastien Lecornu, the presidency said on Monday, plunging the country further into political deadlock.The largely unchanged cabinet lineup Macron announced late on Sunday was met with fierce criticism across the political spectrum. Continue reading...

Politics