01/04/2014 09:12
French President Hollande names Valls as new PM
President Francois Hollande has named Interior Minister Manuel Valls as France's next prime minister, the BBC reported.
Mr Hollande, whose popularity has slumped, said Mr Valls would head a "fighting government."
The ruling Socialists have been badly bruised in local elections which saw big gains for conservatives and the far-right National Front (FN).
Mr Valls, 51, has replaced PM Jean-Marc Ayrault, whose office confirmed his resignation on Monday.
In a short televised address on Monday, President Hollande said France had to put right its public finances, acknowledging it was time for change.
He proposed a reduction in taxes and worker contributions to spur job creation. "We are in this for the long haul," he said.
Mr Valls, a liberal, is distrusted by the Socialist party's left-wing and has presidential ambitions of his own but he is popular with the voters, says the BBC's Christian Fraser in Paris.
The second round of municipal elections on Sunday saw the Socialists lose more than 150 towns and cities of more than 9,000 inhabitants. Results are still being counted.