French sports minister resigns ahead of Macron’s reshuffle announcement
4532 Mins Read
French sports minister Laura Flessel has resigned from president Emmanuel Macron’s cabinet for “personal reasons”. “I made the decision to leave the government for personal reasons.
France 24
French President Emmanuel Macron hopes to draw a line under a raft of troubles plaguing his 16-month-old presidency and to re-energise his economic reform drive with a cabinet reshuffle on Tuesday.
Macron was forced into the move by the surprise exit of his former ecology minister, Nicolas Hulot, who said he despaired at what he felt were hollow commitments on environmental policy.
Resigning live on air last week, Hulot’s resignation was a setback for the 40-year-old French leader, who returned from the summer break reeling from a bodyguard scandal and preparing to embark on a new wave of economic reforms.
Benjamin Griveaux, government spokesman, said the cabinet would be complete in time for Wednesday morning’s weekly cabinet meeting but was tight-lipped on the scope of the rejig.
Hours before the expected announcement, Sports Minister Laura Flessel said she was resigning from the government for personal reasons.
“I will continue to be a faithful team mate of the president and prime minister, whose determination I admire and whose values and patriotism I share,” said Flessel, a former Olympic fencing champion and one of Macron’s most popular ministers.
