New French president turns both Left and Right to fill his government

EMMANUEL MACRON, the new French president, yesterday picked a government with a mixture of Left- and Right-wingers, gender parity and a strong emphasis on Europe.

Half of the government come from civil society.

Mr Macron, 39, had already named conservative Edouard Philippe, 46, a member of The Republicans party, as his prime minister on Monday.

Since then, a host of Right-wingers have rallied to the Macron camp, strengthening his grip on power. Many Socialists had already jumped ship.

Yesterday, Jean-yves Le Drian, 69, the outgoing Socialist defence minister, was placed in charge of a newly named “Europe and foreign affairs” ministry, underlining the importance of the EU for Mr Macron, who has pledged to “relaunch” the bloc.

In an indication Mr Macron hopes to boost EU military cooperation, he chose as defence minister centrist Sylvie Goulard, 52, a German-speaking MEP and staunch federalist.

Right-wingers were put in charge of finance posts. Bruno Le Maire, 48, a German-speaking ex-europe minister from The Republicans who has called for caps on welfare benefits, was named economy minister. He is joined by fellow conservative Gerald Darmanin, 34, a former Sarkozy ally, who will be budget minister.

In a coup for Mr Macron, Nicolas Hulot, 62, a star ecologist, was named environment minister after refusing to join the cabinets of several previous administrations.

Gérard Collomb, 69, the veteran Socialist mayor of Lyon, was appointed interior minister, the most senior cabinet post. François Bayrou, 66, the centrist leader of Modem whose backing was seen as crucial for Mr Macron, was named justice minister.