In his first major decision, newly inaugurated French President Emmanuel Macron has named conservative lawmaker Edouard Philippe as prime minister. Philippe has been the mayor of Le Havre, a port city in the Normandy region of northern France, since 2010 and became a member of parliament for the region two years later.
Emmanuel Macron is beginning his first day as French president with two main tasks, picking a prime minster, a crucial appointment since he needs to make a good showing in next month's parliamentary elections to push through his planned economic reforms. The second is to travel to Germany to meet Chancellor Angela Merkel.