PARIS, June 20 (Xinhua) -- French minister for territorial planning Richard Ferrand, under fire over corruption allegations, will quit the government and lead the parliamentary group of the Republic on The Move ruling party (LREM), Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said Tuesday.
"The new government will be ... without Richard Ferrand," Phillpipe told news channel BFMTV.
"After discussion with the President of the Republic, he considered he has a delicate responsibility in the National Assembly in which he could succeed," he said.
Joining President Emmanuel Macron's first cabinet in May, Ferrand has been under pressure over claims of suspected financial deals in relation with rental accord with a company owned by his partner when he managed a medical insurance group in western France for the 1998-2012 period.
Public prosecutor had launched an inquiry into the allegations that the minister had denied.
Previously a Socialist, Ferrand was the first politician who quit the political mainstream to support Macron's bid, before becoming the head of his presidential campaign.
Shortly after he took office last month, Macron pledged for cleaning up political life via new anti-graft legislation with which he wants to impose new ethics in public life after fraud scandals tainted France's 2017 presidency campaign.
