Jean Castex Named France’s New Prime Minister

French President Emmanuel Macron named Jean Castex as the country's next prime minister on Friday (July 3).

Castex, who coordinated French re-opening plan for the virus, will replace Edouard Philippe, who resigned earlier in the day.

Macron has been reshaping the government to focus on restarting the economy after months of lockdown. Many members of the government are expected to be replaced in the reshuffle.

Castex, 55, is a civil servant who has served for a variety of administrations.

In a Thursday interview, Macron said he was looking for a "new path" to rebuild the country for the remaining two years of his term.

He praised Philippe's "outstanding work" in the past three years.

"I will need to make choices to lead (the country) down the path," he said.

The reshuffle comes days after the green wave swept across France in local elections. Macron saw his young centrist party defeated in the larger cities of France and struggled to develop local roots throughout the region.

It was planned even before Sunday's vote, as Macron 's government faced obstacles and criticism both before and during the virus crisis.

As the pandemic was peaking in the country in March and April, authorities came under fire for the lack of masks, tests and medical equipment.

Previously, Macron's pro-business reforms, generally regarded as benefiting the wealthy, had been disrupted by the yellow-billed nationalist protest toward alleged social inequality. This winter, weeks of strikes and street protests against a proposed pension reform disrupted the country.

In addition, Macron's efforts to boost job creation have been swept away by the economic and social consequences of the country's lockdown.

The government issued a 460 billion-euro emergency package through a state-funded partial activity scheme, tax cuts and other financial aids for businesses, and Macron needs to adapt his policies as France's economy is expected to shrink by 11 percent this year.

The unemployment rate that fell from 9.2 percent at the beginning of Macron's term in 2017 to 7.6 percent earlier this year — its lowest level since 2008 — is now expected to increase steadily.

"Our first priority will be to rebuild an economy that is strong, ecological, sovereign and united," Macron said in a televised address to the nation on June 14.

He ruled out any tax raise and then said that "working and creating more" is a solution in the wake of bankruptcies and unemployment triggered by the crisis.

He concentrated on generating new opportunities with climate-oriented initiatives, including rehabilitation of old buildings and greener transport and industries.

Philippe, 49, is expected to become the mayor of his hometown of Le Havre, in western France, after he won a large victory in Sunday's voting.

A nationalist, longtime leader of the Republican Party, he entered Macron 's cabinet in May 2017.

He has seen a significant rise in popularity in recent weeks, according to French polling stations, which indicate that many French think he has done a decent job of slowly lifting virus-related sanctions in the country and launching an emergency plan to help the French economy.

Source: AP