Lucie Castets is looking for a job. But certainly not at City Hall. The former finance director of the city of Paris was ousted by Anne Hidalgo, without superfluous elegance, as the mayor notified her of her dismissal by SMS at the end of August. A month after being named the candidate of the New Popular Front (NFP) for the post of Prime Minister. But, after about two months of “ Campaign “, The 37-year-old economist was not appointed to Matignon, which is why the job search is urgent.
Nor will he join Michel Barnier’s government, “even if we [lui] Bercy suggests ». So what? “I am a state administrator attached to the Ministry of Finance, details the framework. I will probably be available. I am looking for something more in the associative field. »
Politically, he has enjoyed the adventure of the NFP and wants to continue to embody the unity of the left, even though he does not yet have any elective mandate. How? The question is sufficiently intimidating to make the interested party hesitate about the words to use: “I want to continue to be involved as a travelling companion of the NFP parties. In the longer term, I have to find my place. This is currently being considered… I would like, perhaps, to propose a form of initiative or entity that can be a receptacle for various ideas… To give substance to this impulse with great collective force in order to propose a credible alternative. I remain available if Michel Barnier is censured, but not in a waiting position.”
Meanwhile, Lucie Castets continues as if (almost) nothing had happened. She continues to have “regular meetings” with the four leaders of the four parties of the NFP. She was invited to debate at the Fête de HumanityFriday 13 September, by the leader of the communists, Fabien Roussel. His team, which he had hastily assembled in mid-summer, did not interrupt the process of perfecting the PFN programme. “We have experts on all topics”specifies. A “Tour de France” to champion the cause of public services is still being considered, but is not yet finalised; it is not being helped by the parties, who have other priorities at the moment.
The metamorphosis of a neophyte
This senior official continues to be questioned by the foreign press; recently, the New York Times and the Guardian. And he had to respond to a journalistic controversy. Marianne on his alleged financial claims to secure his role: “I am disgusted by this controversy. I have not received a single cent from the NFP. These are the parties that asked me to establish an estimate of our operating budget.”
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