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Raymond Barre

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Raymond Barre
Barre in 1980
Prime Minister of France
In office
25 August 1976 – 21 May 1981
PresidentValéry Giscard d'Estaing
Preceded byJacques Chirac
Succeeded byPierre Mauroy
MayorofLyon
In office
25 June 1995 – 25 March 2001
Preceded byMichel Noir
Succeeded byGérard Collomb
Minister of the Economy and Finance
In office
27 August 1976 – 5 April 1978
Prime MinisterHimself
Preceded byJean-Pierre Fourcade
Succeeded byRené Monory
Minister of Foreign Trade
In office
12 January 1976 – 25 August 1976
Prime MinisterJacques Chirac
Preceded byNorbert Ségard
Succeeded byAndré Rossi
European Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs
In office
7 February 1967 – 5 January 1973
PresidentJean Rey
Franco Maria Malfatti
Sicco Mansholt
Preceded byRobert Marjolin
Succeeded byWilhelm Haferkamp
Personal details
Born
Raymond Octave Joseph Barre

(1924-04-12)12 April 1924
St-Denis,France
Died25 August 2007(2007-08-25)(aged 83)
Paris, France
Political partyIndependent,affiliated withUDF
The house where Raymond Barre was born in Saint-Denis, Réunion

Raymond Octave Joseph Barre(French:[ʁɛmɔ̃baʁ];12 April 1924 – 25 August 2007) was a French politician and economist. He was aVice President of the European CommissionandCommissioner for Economic and Financial Affairsunder three presidents (Rey,MalfattiandMansholt). He later served asPrime MinisterunderValéry Giscard d'Estaingfrom 1976 until 1981. As a candidate for thepresidency in 1988,he came in third and was eliminated in the first round. He was born inSaint-Denis,on the French island ofRéunion,and then still a colony (it became anoverseas departmentin 1946).

Career[edit]

Professional life[edit]

After his education, Raymond Barre was a professor of economics at theInstitut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris(Sciences Po)as well asÉcole Centrale Paris.

From 1959 to 1962, he was director ofJean-Marcel Jeanneney's staff in the ministry of Industry and Trade. Then, in 1967, PresidentCharles de Gaullechose him asVice-President of the European CommissionforEconomic & Financial Affairs.He stayed inBrusselsuntil January 1973, serving in theRey,MalfattiandMansholt Commissions.Having come back to France, he joined the cabinet as minister of External Trade in January 1976.

Premiership[edit]

Seven months later, while mostly unknown at that time, PresidentGiscard d'Estaingappointed himPrime Ministerand Minister of Economy and Finance. He presented him to the French people as "the best economist in France" (French:meilleur économiste de France). Under theFifth Republic,he was the only person to hold these two offices at the same time. He left the ministry of Economy and Finance in 1978 but stayed as Prime minister until the defeat of Giscard d'Estaing at the1981 presidential election.

At the head of the cabinet, he was faced with the conflict which divided the parliamentary majority between the "Giscardians" and the neo-GaullistRally for the Republic(RPR) led by his predecessorJacques Chirac.The right majority unexpectedly won the1978 legislative election.

Barre was primarily confronted with an economic crisis. He advocated numerous complex, strict policies ( "Barre Plans" ). The first Barre plan emerged on 22 September 1976, with a priority to stop inflation. It included a 3-month price freeze; a reduction in the value-added tax; wage controls; salary controls; a reduction of the growth in the money supply; and increases in the income tax, automobile taxes, luxury taxes and bank rates. There were measures to restore the trade balance and support the growth of the economy and employment. Oil imports, whose price had shot up, were limited. There was special aid to exports, and an action fund was set up to aid industries. There was increased financial aid to farmers, who were suffering from a drought, and for social security. The package was not very popular but was pursued with vigor.[1]

He did not use diplomatic language in the face of trade union opposition,. Instead, he mocked "the bearers of banners" (French:les porteurs de pancartes) and he exhorted "instead of grousing, you should work hard".

Post-premiership[edit]

After he departed from the head of the cabinet, he was elected deputy ofRhônedépartementunder the label of theUnion for French Democracy(UDF). However, he never formally joined the party. He held his parliamentary seat until 2002.

In the 1980s, he competed for the leadership of the right against Chirac. Believing that the "cohabitation"was incompatible with the"Fifth Republic",he let Chirac take the lead of the cabinet after the1986 legislative election.He ran as UDF candidate for president in the1988 election,but some components of his party covertly supported the other right-wing candidate, the Neo-Gaullist Prime MinisterJacques Chirac.In this, in spite of positive polls at the beginning of the campaign, he came third behind the two protagonists of the "cohabitation": the Socialist PresidentFrançois MitterrandandJacques Chirac.For the second round, he called his voters to transfer to the RPR candidate, who was finally defeated.

After the failure of his presidential candidacy, he focused on his local tenures, inLyon.In 1995, the RPR Mayor of LyonMichel Noircould not compete for another term due to a judicial indictment, and consequently, Barre was the conservative candidate for the mayoralty. He was elected but he did not run for a second term in 2001. One year later, he finished his last parliamentary term in theFrench National Assemblyand retired from politics.

Raymond Barre was probably the only French politician to have reached such high levels of responsibilities without having ever been an official member or leader of any political party. He always kept some distance with what he considered to be the political "microcosm".

Raymond Barre died on 25 August 2007 at age 83 at theVal-de-Grâcemilitary hospital in Paris,[2]where he was being treated for heart problems since his transfer from a hospital inMonacoon 11 April 2007.[3]

Political career[edit]

Governmental functions

Prime minister: 1976–1981.

Minister of Economy and Finance: 1976–1978.

Minister of Foreign Trade: January–August 1976.

Electoral mandates

National Assembly of France

Member of theNational Assembly of FranceforRhône (department):1981–2002. Elected in 1981, reelected in 1986, 1988, 1993, 1997.

Municipal Council

Mayor ofLyon:1995–2001.

Municipal councillor ofLyon:1995–2001.

Urban community Council

President of theUrban Community of Lyon:1995–2001.

Member of theUrban Community of Lyon:1995–2001.

Bilderberg Conference participant 1983

Allegations of antisemitism[edit]

Raymond Barre standing next to MotherTessa Bieleckiand RabbiImmanuel Jakobovitsduring the 1989World Economic Forum

On several occasions, Raymond Barre made remarks that were interpreted as antisemitic, or at least supportive ofantisemitism.In 1980, when he was prime minister, abombing was attemptedagainst theUnion Libérale Israélite de France,a synagogue in the rue Copernic, Paris; however the bomb detonated in the street when the Jews attendingshabbatwere inside the synagogue, and not when they were out; but as a result some non-Jewish bystanders were killed. Raymond Barre then famously denounced:

"A hateful attack which wanted to strike at the Jews who were in that synagogue, and which struck innocent French people who were crossing the street."[4][5]

In 2007, Barre argued on a radio show that "the Jewish lobby" had orchestrated criticism regarding his 1980 remarks. On this same show, Barre defended thecollaborationistMaurice Paponat his trial, describing him as "a scapegoat." Barre was criticized for these remarks.[5]

Governments[edit]

Barre's First Government, 25 August 1976 – 30 March 1977[edit]

Barre's Second Government, 30 March 1977 – 5 April 1978[edit]

Changes

  • 26 September 1977 –Fernand Icartsucceeds Fourcade as Minister of Equipment and Regional Planning.

Barre's Third Government, 5 April 1978 – 21 May 1981[edit]

Changes

  • 29 November 1978 –Jean François-Poncetsucceeds Guiringaud as Minister of Foreign Affairs.
  • 4 July 1979 –Jacques Barrotsucceeds Veil as Minister of Health and Social Security.Maurice Charretiersucceeds Barrot as Minister of Commerce and Craft Industry.
  • 29 October 1979 –Jean Mattéolisucceeds Boulin as Minister of Labour and Participation.
  • 2 October 1980 –Joël Le Theulesucceeds Bourges as Minister of Defense.Daniel Hoeffelsucceeds Le Theule as Minister of Transport.Michel Cointatsucceeds Deniau as Minister of External Commerce.
  • 22 December 1980 –Robert Galleysucceeds Le Theule (d.14 December) as Minister of Defense.
  • 4 March 1981 –Michel d'Ornanosucceeds Lecat as Minister of Culture. No one succeeds Lecat as Minister of Communication.

Retirement[edit]

Barre retired from active politics in June 2002. He was being treated at a hospital for a heart condition since April 2007 when he died on 25 August 2007. He was survived by his wife and two sons.[6]

Honours[edit]

French Honours[edit]

Foreign Honours[edit]

Works[edit]

  • La Période dans l'analyse économique – une approche à l'étude du temps,SEDEIS, 1950
  • Économie politique,Paris, Presses universitaires de France, Thémis économie, 1959
  • Le Développement économique: analyse et politique,1958
  • Une politique pour l'avenir,Plon, 1981
  • La Désinflation,Paris, Que sais-je?, 1983
  • Un plan pour l'Europe – la Communauté européenne, problèmes et perspectives,Presses universitaires deNancy,1984
  • Réflexions pour demain,1984, PlurielISBN2010102673
  • Au tournant du siècle,Plon, 1988
  • Questions de confiance – Entretiens avecJean-Marie Colombani,Flammarion,1988
  • Entretiens,collectif, 2001
  • L'Expérience du pouvoir,conversations avecJean Bothorel,Fayard,2007ISBN2213630313.[8]

References[edit]

  1. ^J.R. Frears,France in the Giscard Presidency(1981) p. 135.
  2. ^"BBC NEWS, French ex-PM Raymond Barre dies".25 August 2007.Archivedfrom the original on 26 March 2012.Retrieved25 August2007.
  3. ^LeMonde.fr with AFPArchived9 May 2007 at theWayback Machine,11 April 2007
  4. ^TF1,late evening news,3 October 1980[permanent dead link]
  5. ^abBernard, Ariane (27 August 2007)."Raymond Barre, 83, Former French Premier, Dies".The New York Times.Archivedfrom the original on 24 February 2021.Retrieved1 December2019.
  6. ^"French ex-PM Raymond Barre dies".BBC News.BBC. 25 August 2007.Archivedfrom the original on 16 October 2019.Retrieved1 December2019.
  7. ^"BOE.es - Sumario del día 28/10/1976".boe.es.Retrieved20 August2023.
  8. ^"L'expérience du pouvoir: conversations avec Jean Bothorel".FranceCulture.fr.Archivedfrom the original on 12 February 2015.Retrieved8 January2015..

Further reading[edit]

  • Bell, David et al. eds.Biographical Dictionary of French Political Leaders Since 1870(1990) pp 18–20.
  • Bell, David.Presidential Power in Fifth Republic France(2000) passim.
  • Frears, J. R.France in the Giscard Presidency(1981) passim.
  • Ryan, W. Francis. "France under Giscard"Current History(May 1981) 80#466, pp. 201–6, online.

External links[edit]

Political offices
Preceded by French European Commissioner
1967–1973
Served alongside:Jean-François Deniau,Henri Rochereau 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Succeeded by
Succeeded by
European Commissioner for Economic and
Financial Affairs
1967–1973 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Minister of Foreign Trade
1976 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Prime Minister of France
1976–1981 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Minister of the Economy and Finance
1976–1978 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Mayor ofLyon
1995–2001 		Succeeded by
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