French President Macron picks Jean Castex as new PM

French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday tapped a senior but low-profile bureaucrat as prime minister to replace Edouard Philippe, the first move in a widely expected cabinet reshuffle after dismal local election showings for the ruling party.

The new premier, Jean Castex, was drawn from the right-wing opposition to Macron's centrist party, and was totally unknown to most in France until now.

READ MORE

French PM Philippe resigns as Macron readies reshuffle

Macron lashes out at Israeli security for breach of etiquette at Old Jerusalem church

But Castex, a former top aide to ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy, has been in charge of the country's progressive emergence from the coronavirus lockdown, a policy greeted as a relative success by experts.

Former French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe (left) stands with newly-appointed PM Jean Castex in Paris on Friday. AFP

"Let's be clear: I'm not here to seek the limelight. I'm here to get results," Castex said in what was effectively his introduction to the general public during a prime-time interview on TF1.

He said he would present his political road map next week, and a wider cabinet overhaul is expected in the coming days.

Macron has promised a "new course" for France to deal with the crisis, which has plunged France into its worst recession since World War II and left millions of people facing unemployment.

The former investment banker, who swept to power in 2017 on pledges to radically reform France, already has a wary eye on his 2022 re-election bid after months of protests and strikes that preceded the coronavirus outbreak.

Speculation that Philippe was on the way out mounted this week after Macron's centrists were routed in municipal elections last Sunday, which saw the Greens take control of several major cities.

Philippe, a popular right-wing politician who never joined Macron's Republic on the Move party, nonetheless easily won his bid to be mayor of Le Havre.

His approval ratings have surged over his handling of the coronavirus crisis, while those of Macron, who has pursued ambitious economic reforms since coming to office in 2017, have fallen.

During the official handover ceremony at the Hotel de Matignon, Philippe gave wide smiles while saying his goodbyes, posing for photos and selfies while sporting a telling choice of cuff links -- minature purple flip-flops.