French Prime Minister Édouard Philippe resigns

French Prime Minister Édouard Philippe presented his resignation to President Emmanuel Macron on Friday, and the President accepted it, opening the door to a reshuffle in the government. Philippe and the current team will continue to manage current affairs until a new Executive is appointed, the Elysée Palace said in a statement.

The Prime Minister's resignation - the formula usually used in France when the President wants a new Government - does not necessarily mean that Philippe cannot be given the task of continuing to head the Executive, although the French media suggest that he will not continue. The government reshuffle was taken for granted after the second round of municipal elections last Sunday, but the arrival of the new team may still be delayed by several days.

Philippe was elected mayor of his city, the port of Le Havre, in these elections, a position he should assume tomorrow, Saturday. Macron, who admitted that he would change his government in an interview published this morning in the regional press, has remained secretive about Philippe's fate.

The President has stated on many occasions that he wishes to make a more social and environmental turnaround in his policy for the two years remaining in power before the presidential elections scheduled for the spring of 2022.

The now acting Prime Minister can take a step back and devote himself to the Mayor's Office of Le Havre, a position he held when Macron elected him to lead his Executive after his victory in the 2017 presidential elections.