PARIS, May 20 — Bruno Le Maire will retain his job as French finance minister in a government overhaul to be announced by President Emmanuel Macron’s office later today, BFM TV reported, citing un-named sources.
Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin will also retain his portfolio while Macron loyalist Marc Fesneau is to be promoted to agriculture minister, BFM TV reported.
Re-elected in April, Macron names his new government as he acts to recast his leadership and persuade voters that he has had heard their frustrations ahead of parliamentary elections next month.
Macron wants to start afresh after April’s vote saw the far-right come its closest yet to power, with the coronavirus pandemic and now surging inflation reversing some of the hard fought gains earned by moves to liberalise the economy.
The presidential campaign underscored the widespread discontent towards ballooning living costs and Macron himself. Although polls show he should be able to form a ruling majority, he is under pressure from an alliance of left-wing parties and a re-energised far-right leader, Marine Le Pen.
Finance Ministry officials did not immediately comment on Le Maire’s reported job renewal.
If the president wins a majority, his government’s priorities from this summer will include further measures to help households make ends meet as prices surge, pushing back the retirement age as part of a pension system overhaul and acting faster to combat climate change.
Should Macron and his allies lose the parliamentary election, he will have to name a new prime minister from the ruling majority who will then be tasked with naming a new cabinet.
Macron on Monday named Elisabeth Borne, 61, as his new prime minister. The left-leaning career technocrat served in his earlier governments, first as environment and later as labour minister. — Reuters
