Notre Dame: Embattled Macron seeks boost from reopening

With French politics in turmoil, Macron hopes to benefit from the reopening of the cathedral.

British Broadcasting CorporationWatch LiveHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureArtsTravelEarthVideoLiveHomeNewsIsrael-Gaza WarWar in UkraineUS & CanadaUKUK PoliticsEnglandN. IrelandN. Ireland PoliticsScotlandScotland PoliticsWalesWales PoliticsAfricaAsiaChinaIndiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastIn PicturesBBC InDepthBBC VerifySportBusinessExecutive LoungeTechnology of BusinessFuture of BusinessInnovationTechnologyScience & HealthArtificial IntelligenceAI v the MindCultureFilm & TVMusicArt & DesignStyleBooksEntertainment NewsArtsArts in MotionTravelDestinationsAfricaAntarcticaAsiaAustralia and PacificCaribbean & BermudaCentral AmericaEuropeMiddle EastNorth AmericaSouth AmericaWorld’s TableCulture & ExperiencesAdventuresThe SpeciaListEarthNatural WondersWeather & ScienceClimate SolutionsSustainable BusinessGreen LivingVideoLiveLive NewsLive SportHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureArtsTravelEarthVideoLiveAudioWeatherNewslettersEmbattled Macron seeks boost from Notre Dame reopeningReutersEmmanuel Macron plans to use the reopening of the cathedral for a political boostA gravely weakened President Emmanuel Macron hopes to win a new lease of political life from Saturday's ceremonial reopening of Notre Dame.

Joined by US President-elect Donald Trump, Prince William and other international figures, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Macron will seek to present the renovated cathedral as a symbol of France's inner reserves of creative strength.

In a speech marking the occasion, he will urge the world to see beyond the country's current political crisis and admire the determination, organisation and hard graft that have rescued one of France's most famous buildings in just five years.

The long-awaited event comes just as France enters a period of deep uncertainty triggered by the fall of Prime Minister Michel Barnier's government on Wednesday. A replacement has yet to be named.

Five-and-a-half years after the devastating fire, Macron had planned to make the cathedral's reopening the optimistic climax of 2024 – a year also marked by the Paris Olympic Games.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clykrydz7lpo

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