It is 9.41 am, this Wednesday, January 20, when Emmanuel Macron and Jean Castex descend the Murat staircase of the Elysée.
Ministers have been waiting for them for nearly three quarters of an hour.
In the camera of the presidential office, the President of the Republic and his Prime Minister tune their violins.
"Well, ladies and gentlemen ministers, forgive me for the delay", apologizes the Head of State as he enters the Murat room, on the ground floor of the palace.
Welcome to the Health Defense Council.
It is the supreme body for steering crisis management, from which came the toughest decisions in the fight against the Covid-19 epidemic, such as containment.
The meeting is so secret that it intrigues, arouses fantasies as well as critics from the opposition, which sees it as the symbol of the ultra-personal power of Emmanuel Macron.
That of this Wednesday is the 44th for a year.
"If you haven't worked, you're in trouble"
Dressed in a dark turtleneck, the head of state sits down.
He greets the sixteen ministers he has invited for the occasion.
Three are in videoconference.
Unlike the Council of Ministers, the Defense Council sees its cast change from one week to the next, at the goodwill of the Head of State.
He also invites outside personalities.
"In the Defense Council, certain personalities outside the government can intervene and provide their insight, such as Professor Alain Fischer on vaccines, that is the interest", explains spokesman Gabriel Attal.
Emmanuel Macron first turns to Olivier Véran, the Minister of Health, for an update on the health situation./LP / Olivier Corsan
To start, Emmanuel Macron turns to Olivier Véran.
“What is the health situation?
Then, we give the floor to the Director General of Health Jérôme Salomon.
The picture drawn by these two men is contrasted.
There is the good news: the contaminations do not explode and the restriction of movement imposed with the curfew at 6 p.m. seems to be paying off.
And then, the bad ones: the variants are worrying.
Here, nobody speaks moreover of “variants” but of “VOC-202012/1” and “501Y.V2”, the scientific names of the English and South African mutants.
"If you haven't worked, you're in trouble," smiles a regular.
While waiting to see more clearly, the executive decides to wait a few days before making strategic decisions.
Ushers bring the coffee.
Each minister has in front of him a red file on which is written: "Contains sensitive and strictly personal information".
The president is increasing the pressure on his troops: "Mr. Minister of Health, do the models of our projections for two weeks and one month change with the improvement of treatments", asks Emmanuel Macron.
"How much would it cost to compensate the stations?"
It is 10:13 a.m.
The discussion turns to overseas.
Relatively spared so far, they are cause for concern.
Sébastien Lecornu discusses the situation in Mayotte and the West Indies.
The minister must announce a turn of the screw at the end of the week.
Then, her colleague from Culture Roselyne Bachelot continues.
She pleads for additional gestures in favor of artists.
"I suggest that we make decisions next week depending on the health situation," dodges the head of state.
What bothers him right now is the sales season that begins.
Emmanuel Macron calls for "special attention" on gauges in stores.
Another concern: health control at the borders.
How to avoid the arrival of patients infected with the new variants?
Secretary of State for European Affairs Clément Beaune provides some details before the European Council on Thursday.
If several participants are present, others follow the meeting by videoconference. / LP / Olivier Corsan
It is in a secure room at the Quai d'Orsay.
At his side, the Secretary of State for Tourism, Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne, also attends the videoconference.
That turns out well.
He is in charge of the ski resorts.
Their season seems compromised this time.
A debate begins to know whether to propose a new review clause to mountain professionals or whether it is preferable to declare a blank year.
"How much would it cost to compensate the stations", we ask the Minister of the Economy Bruno le Maire.
The head of state instructs Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne to probe the sector on leaving.
Which will be done a few hours later.
"A debate where everyone takes their part"
"This is proof that these Defense Councils are not places of absolute power but of concertation," said a relative of the Head of State.
Which underlines that the arbitrations can evolve until the announcements of Thursday - Olivier Véran must reveal them in the evening on television.
"The agenda is more formal in a Council of Ministers with the presentation of legal texts," adds the Minister of Health.
There, in the Defense Council, we focus on a few specific subjects.
We enter with questions.
We come out with answers.
After a debate where everyone takes their part.
"
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It is eleven o'clock. "Well, we will stop there," says Emmanuel Macron. Everyone takes a breath for a few minutes… then returns to their seats. Because it is the hour of the Council of Ministers, with the rest of the government which connects in videoconference. An institutional meeting that has lost its charm since the real place of power is now nestled in the Defense Councils.
