The 53-year-old French economist previously served as economic adviser to Francois Hollande, the Socialist president between 2014 and 2016.
In the reshuffle, Macron dropped Damien Abad, who was accused of raping multiple women.
Last week, French prosecutors said they had opened an investigation into the allegations, which were made public shortly after Mr Abad was appointed minister of solidarity and people with disabilities in May.
The investigation will focus on allegations by two women who separately accused him of forcing them to have non-consensual sex with him. He denied the allegations.
Mr Abad has been replaced by Jean-Christophe Combe, head of the French Red Cross.
The claims created a headache for Mr Macron, who was already under pressure to reshuffle his cabinet after his party lost its absolute majority in parliament in legislative elections last month.
Aurore Berger, the head of his La République en Marche party, told French radio RTL on Sunday that “as soon as an investigation starts, it means that people will not be able to fulfill their role properly.”
Chrysoula Zaharopoulou, the junior minister for international development, will keep her position despite allegations of gynecological rape by former patients. Ms Zaharopoulou has denied allegations that she raped patients during gynecological examinations.
Gérald Darmanin, the hardline interior minister who was investigated for rape when he was appointed in July 2020, will keep his post and expand his portfolio to oversee French territories. He denied wrongdoing and in January prosecutors asked for the case to be dismissed.
Add Comment