French President Emmanuel Macron appointed a former Green lawmaker as his new environment minister on Tuesday, hoping to inject new life into his rattled administration after a summer of problems and before another round of reforms.
Macron was forced into the move after Nicolas Hulot, a popular eco-campaigner, resigned live on radio last week over what he felt were hollow commitments on environmental policy.
The nomination of Francois de Rugy to replace him reflected Macron’s desire to give the sensitive portfolio, which includes energy, to a thick-skinned career politician with experience balancing ideals with political realities, energy analysts said.
The 40-year-old president also named Roxana Maracineanu as sports minister to replace former Olympic fencing champion Laura Flessel, who said she was quitting for personal reasons.
Maracineanu is an Olympic swimming silver medalist.
