Ayrault has never previously held a ministerial post.Paris (ANTARA News/AFP) - French President Francois Hollande`s new Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault arrived at the Matignon Palace in Paris on Wednesday and began drawing up a cabinet on his first day of work.
Ayrault, a 62-year-old former German teacher and longtime Hollande ally, arrived with his wife and said farewell to former president Nicolas Sarkozy`s premier Francois Fillon before getting down to work.
Like Hollande, who on Tuesday became France`s first Socialist president since 1995, Ayrault has never previously held a ministerial post but is seen as a consensus builder.
He was named to the job of prime minister over other potential candidates, including Socialist Party leader and former labour minister Martine Aubry, who reportedly refused to join the cabinet if she did not get the top job.
One of her aides told Le Monde newspaper`s website that Aubry, who is mayor of the northern city of Lille, saw "no sense" in being a member of Hollande`s cabinet if she were not the prime minister.
(Uu.H-AK)
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