London | French President Emmanuel Macron has sprung a political surprise by tapping Michel Barnier, the EU’s former Brexit negotiator and the nemesis of Britain’s Brexiteers, as his prime minister.

Mr Macron, a centrist liberal, has turned to the 73-year-old veteran conservative in desperation. The president’s decision to call a snap election in June backfired badly, producing a parliament riven between irreconcilable far-left and hard-right blocs.