Q U I G O U V E R N E L A F R A N C E ? N ° 6 8 - Pouvoirs

P O U V O I R Sthe Prime minister to bring his personal touch to bear on the whole ofhis government’s policy.In a word, leaving aside the « cohabitation », Matignon always do moreor less everything.P IERRE AVRILThe parliamentary majority ?188Just as in England, the majority receives from the voters the mandate tosupport the government in parliament, but it has two particularfeatures. On the one hand, it is less a governing than a governed majority,given the predominant role of the presidential election and the parliamentaryprocedure. On the other hand, it is used, given the unilateralworking of the separation of powers according to which its member’smain role is to guarantee the presence of and the support for the rulingbloc in the country. Its influence is felt in a negative way, in its greaterability to bloc rather than to propose.M ICHEL S APINThe real power of BercyIn order to illustrate the real power of Bercy one must first explain howit works. Its power and its efficiency are based on five pillars : the powerto administer, the power to control, the power to draft and to implementglobal policies, the power to know and the power to influence. All thishowever does not amount to an abuse of power, but represents a legitimatecentre thereof. It is then up to the political leaders to command.Never is Bercy happier than when it obeys.J EAN-LOUIS Q UERMONNEAn investigation of ministerial cabinetsMinisterial cabinets represent an example of what is called the « Frenchexception ». Their predominance is supposed to protect the administrativeservices from the untimely pressures of the political world andof pressure groups.The cabinets are the targets of many criticisms (the wall they erectbetween the minister and his services, their precariousness, their workmethods, their appointment procedure and the immunity of their members).However one may question the ability of the political power to