Macron Names New Ecology Minister After Previous One Resigned Amid Lavish Dinners Scandal

PARIS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 17th July, 2019) French President Emmanuel Macron has named Elisabeth Borne as the country's Ecology Minister after the previous one, Francois de Rugy, quit over the lavish dinners scandal.

"On the proposal of the Prime Minister, the President of the Republic [Macron] terminated, at his request, the duties of Mr. Francois de Rugy, Minister of Ecological and Solidary Transition. He appointed Mrs. Elisabeth Borne as the Minister of Ecological and Solidary Transition," the statement from the Elysee Palace said late Tuesday.

Rugy said Tuesday he had submitted his resignation letter after what he described as "media lynching."

French media accused the minister of spending taxpayers' money on a lavish lifestyle. An investigative website, Mediapart, reported this month that de Rugy and his wife had been frequently dining on lobsters and vintage wines. It later published photos purporting to be that of a luxurious apartment that the couple spent tens of thousands of public money on to renovate.