Sources told Le Figaro the level of irritation was evident as Mr Macron used the impersonal “tu” form and “almost never addresses his ministers by their first names in the formal setting of meetings at the Élysée Palace”.
Unnamed ministers then stuck in the knife with one lambasting Mr Le Maire’s “discourse that consists of saying ‘I’m the only one who’s serious and nobody listens to me’, when it’s been his portfolio for seven years”.
“We’re not talking about a whistleblower taking refuge in an embassy!” the minister is cited as telling Le Figaro.
Another added: “He has pursued an effective economic policy, with results, but his entire record is going up in smoke because of zero credibility on public finances. He’s accountable for that, so he’s on the defensive. He has no choice.”
Mr Le Maire oversaw massive state spending to keep companies afloat during the Covid crisis “whatever it costs”. However, his entourage says he then tried to cut spending but was overruled by Mr Macron with more millions handed out to the French to endure inflation and rising living costs.
In February, Mr Le Maire announced a €10 billion savings plan for 2024 following a downward revision of French growth forecast for this year, from 1.4 per cent to 1 per cent. He intends to make savings of at least €20 billion by 2025 with a view to bringing the public deficit back below 3 per cent of GDP in 2027.
The French Way is Mr Le Maire’s 14th book and the sixth he has written since taking up his post in May 2017. His previous novel, a fiction called American Fugue, contains several steamy passages.
Opponents have regularly blasted him for finding time to write almost 2,000 pages while holding down one of the toughest jobs in government.
“Inflation is exploding, millions of people can no longer eat, fill their fridge, pay their rent. The country is struggling against pension reform. In the meantime minister Bruno Le Maire is writing novels,” said Thomas Portes, an MP for the left-wing France Unbowed party, last year.
“Many of you have asked me how I find the time to write when I am a minister,” he hit back. “I passionately love my job, I am dedicated to serving the French, but I have also learned to take care of my personal balance.”
While others like going to museums, concerts or the football stadium, literature allowed him to “escape everyday life, take a step back and think differently”, he continued. This meant he was prepared to get up at 5am, go to bed late, and to devote his weekends and holidays to writing.
