Sunday, Jun. 23, 2002

Madame La Ministre

By BRUCE CRUMLEY

Noëlle Lenoir has made a habit of jumping gender barriers. Now she's bridging political divides as well. Despite links with Socialist leaders dating back to the late President François Mitterrand, the leftist Lenoir was named France's Minister of European Affairs last week by new conservative Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin. The nomination of Lenoir surprised many on both ends of the political spectrum. But her appointment was described by some observers as proof of Raffarin's determination to assemble a government attentive to — and comprising — all segments of French social and political life. "I think it not only reflects a new, bipartisan approach to governing," Lenoir says, "but also proves European policy has risen above the usual ideological divisions."

Lenoir, 54, knows a thing or two about European policy and diplomacy. A lawyer who specializes in bio- and hi-tech matters, she was already one of France's leading legal ethicists when in 1994 she became president of the European Commission's advisory panel on science and technology policy. Her brief ranged from data secrecy to cloning and involved deliberations with researchers, politicians and business people across the E.U. Before that, Lenoir presided over UNESCO's International Bioethics Committee. Her expertise, insistence on the urgency of farreaching international biotech accords and collegial manner won Lenoir high marks from foreign colleagues, and many in Brussels cheered her selection by Raffarin.

Lenoir's European bona fides are accompanied by experience within France's power élite, whose male domination she challenged early on. In 1986, Mitterrand named her to the Conseil d'Etat — a governmental policy advisory panel — and in 1988 she was tapped as chief of staff of the then leftist government's Justice Ministry. In 1992 she became the first woman ever appointed to the Conseil Constitutionel — France's equivalent to a supreme court — where she acted as that body's leading ethicist. When her term as justice expired in 2001, she continued advising the E.U. and was putting together a private legal practice specializing in bioethics issues when she received the call from Raffarin.

Given the friction that many of France's domestic policies promise to create with its European partners, Lenoir may need all the connections and accumulated goodwill she has acquired. But her easygoing demeanor, eagerness to drop French for English to facilitate discussion and engaging discourse (perfected during teaching stints at Columbia and Yale Universities in the U.S.) should diminish the acidity of debate, though perhaps not resolve underlying differences. Still, bridging gaps — between right and left, women and men, France and Europe — is something at which Lenoir has always excelled, and probably explains her recruitment for the Raffarin team.

Q&A

TIME: Traditional right-left antagonisms make your appointment surprising.
Lenoir: True, but Raffarin is showing he's dedicated to bipartisanship. There is room for everyone. There's got to be if you want the entire expanse of French society to see its reflection in a government. On the European level, you're either pro- European or not. If you are, traditional party politics and ideologies lose their importance.

TIME: What strengths won you the job?
Lenoir: I plan on drawing from my years as a negotiator, adviser and partner with people and administrations on the European level. The experience and relationships I gained during that time may be of help in my new function.

TIME: Because France's domestic policies will cause trouble?
Lenoir: It's too early to predict where problems may arise. This government has programs it plans on putting into place, but it remains a dedicated, pro-European partner.

TIME: Yes, but proposed policies are already causing consternation. Your reputation in Europe surely played a role in your nomination.
Lenoir: Perhaps. It's important to establish and maintain good relationships at the European level. It's also vital to understand the culture and climate at that level.