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President Emmanuel Macron made Tuesday a rare televised speech to reassure the French public that everything was under control after a limited government reshuffle that followed a difficult summer.
"The government is on the right track and has tackled the root of the problems," Macron said in the 12-minute speech delivered by the Elysee.
The long-awaited reshuffle – and the special speech on television – is seen as Macron's attempt to regain control after the resignation of three senior ministers in recent weeks and the fall in popularity.
Macron attempted to give his government a fresh start earlier in the day by appointing Christophe Castaner, the main ally, to the post of Interior Minister, replacing Gerald Collomb as head of the police and police service. the fight against terrorism.
Collomb resigned on 3 October and Macron took a long time to choose his successor, leaving the position of Interior Minister vacant for a while before the Prime Minister took him temporarily.
"My fellow citizens, I know that there is impatience," he added.
Castaner, 52, ran Macron's Republic on the Move party and was the deputy minister in charge of parliamentary relations.
At a brief handover ceremony at the Ministry of the Interior, Castaner said security issues remained the government's top priority.
"Of course, I am thinking of the fight against terrorism, of course I am thinking of the daily work carried out day and night under the direction of the teams of the Ministry of the Interior to dismantle (the terrorist cells) and preserve and guarantee, again, the security of all, "he said.
Macron's office said the changes should accompany a new wave of long overdue reforms.
The 40-year-old French leader, elected last year on a platform to reform the French economy, is committed to changing unemployment benefits and streamlining the pension system. 39, here next summer.
Four other government members were replaced on Tuesday, including the ministers of Culture and Agriculture. Key members of the government, including the finance and foreign affairs ministers, have kept their posts.
Macron has also appointed new deputy ministers primarily responsible for economic issues and the fight against poverty.
The new jobs mean that the size of the government will expand to 34 members, divided equally between men and women, against 29 previously, excluding Prime Minister Edouard Philippe.
Often seen as a "president of the rich" for cutting the taxes of the rich and applying pro-business policies that favor investors and entrepreneurs, Macron is increasingly described by his opponents as arrogant and distant.
Critics also point to the low rate of economic growth and the high unemployment rate, slightly below 9%.
Macron has created a new post of Deputy Minister at the Ministry of Solidarity and Health, which will focus on the fight against poverty. The Ministry of Finance is strengthened with junior ministers focusing on industrial policy and the digital economy. The position of Minister Delegate for Gender Equality, Marlene Schiappa, is expanded to include all struggles against discrimination.
The head of the French National Intelligence Service, Laurent Nunez, has also been appointed Deputy Minister of the Interior.
The new Macron government was immediately confronted by the fury of the far-left leader Jean-Luc Melenchon, who angrily denounced Macron and his new interior minister after raids on the headquarters. of his move and his home Tuesday as part of investigations on the financing of the campaign. misuse of funds from the European Union.
As his followers shouted "Resistance!" Melenchon told reporters that Macron and Castaner should also be the subject of an investigation.
Melenchon lost to Macron in the first round of the 2017 presidential election. At an impromptu press conference, he suggested that the investigation into the finances of his election campaign was motivated by political considerations and designed to scare him, as well as his movement.
Philippe, speaking in the lower house of the French Parliament, stressed that the independence of justice is guaranteed by the French Constitution.
"No individual instruction was given to the prosecutor" in charge of investigating the Melenchon party, he said.
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The authors Thomas Adamson and John Leicester of the Associated Press contributed to the story.
