Michel Barnier

Michel Barnier
Michel Barnier
	Barnier in 2019
Prime Minister of France
	Incumbent
	Assumed office ; 5 September 2024
President	Emmanuel Macron
Preceded by	Gabriel Attal
President
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
Prime Minister
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 73); La Tronche, France
Political party	The Republicans; (since 2015)
Other political; affiliations	Union of Democrats for the Republic (1967–1976); Rally for the Republic; (1976–2002); Union for a Popular Movement (2002–2015)
Spouse	Isabelle Altmayer (m. 1982)
Children	3
Relatives	Éric and Nicolas Altmayer (brothers-in-law); René Altmayer (grandfather-in-law); Victor Joseph Altmayer (great-grandfather-in-law)
Residence(s)	Hôtel Matignon, Paris
Alma mater	ESCP Business School
Occupation	Diplomat; Politician;
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Michel Jean Barnier (French: [miʃɛl baʁnje] ^ⓘ; born 9 January 1951) is a French politician who has served as Prime Minister of France since 5 September 2024.

A member of a series of Gaullist parties (UDR, RPR, UMP, LR), Barnier has served in several French cabinet positions, including as Minister of the Environment from 1993 to 1995, Minister Delegate for European Affairs from 1995 to 1997, Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2004 to 2005, and Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries from 2007 to 2009. At the European Union (EU) level, Barnier was European Commissioner for Internal Market and Services from 2010 to 2014 and vice-president of the European People's Party (EPP) from 2010 to 2015. From October 2016 to 2021, he was the EU's chief negotiator on Britain's exit from the European Union.

In August 2021, Barnier sought his party's nomination for President of France in the 2022 presidential election, but obtained third place at the 2021 The Republicans congress. In September 2024, he was appointed to the prime ministership by President Emmanuel Macron following the 2024 snap legislative election. He is the oldest person to take office as prime minister under the Fifth Republic.

Barnier is a pro-European, Gaullist conservative. He has advocated for stricter controls on extra-European immigration, expanding prison capacity and the introduction of mandatory minimum sentences for certain crimes.