French PM and government resign in Macron's major reshuffle
Paris: Emmanuel Macron asked his Prime Minister, Edouard Philippe, and his government to resign on Friday as the French President seeks a fresh start after a disastrous municipal election last month.
Macron will name a new prime minister on Friday, his office said in a statement. While it isn't yet known who the President will tap, a source told Reuters Philippe, who recently won a mayoral race the northern port city of Le Havre, would not be chosen.
Philippe's win as was a rare bright spot for Macron at the poll, but although the French constitution allows Philippe to name someone to act as mayor while he remains Prime Minister, the win deepened questions over his job.
French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe leaves after a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris last month.Credit:AP
Macron, 42, is seeking a new lease on his presidency, contending with a Yellow Vest movement that has rallied against his efforts to overhaul the pension system as well as a pandemic that has caused nearly 30,000 French deaths. His Republic on the Move party was broadly rejected in a June 28 municipal ballot that saw the Green Party gain strongholds throughout the country.
The French leader has been walking a fine line between promises to overhaul his policies while also standing by commitments to make the nation more friendly to international investors. So far, he's pledged that his government would invest an extra €15 billion ($24 billion) over the next two years to facilitate the economy's environmental transition.
The Greens' stunning performance on Sunday persuaded Macron to put more emphasis on the environment in his policies to shore up his support on the left.
"Ecology is the area where Macron is perceived as having done nothing," said Frederic Dabi, director of pollster Ifop. "The French will want results on green issues."
Already this week he accepted a number of proposals from an environmental citizens' panel, including a recommendation for the French to eat less cheese and meat as a way to help reduce emissions.
'New path'
Macron said in an interview with regional French newspapers on Thursday that the country needed to follow a "new path" based around the economic, social and environmental reconstruction of the country. He added that this would be accompanied by a "new team" in government.
French President Emmanuel Macron's reshuffle is designed to help his party recover from a disastrous municipal ballot last month.Credit:EPA
It could take days for Macron to appoint all the other governmental posts.
Philippe, whose popularity has risen during the coronavirus crisis, has been eyed as a possible contender in the next presidential election in 2022. In an Elabe poll published this month, 57 per cent of respondents said Philippe should remain in his post as prime minister.
Bloomberg, Reuters