21 March 2017•Update: 22 March 2017
By Hajer M’tiri
PARIS
Interior Minister Bruno Le Roux resigned on Tuesday amid a probe into media claims that he employed his two teenage daughters as parliamentary aides.
Le Roux “presented his resignation in order to provide all the details necessary for the establishment of the truth, in the framework of the preliminary investigation opened by the financial prosecutor's office,” a statement by President Francois Hollande’s office said.
Le Roux, 51, confirmed his resignation at a news conference in which he denied any wrongdoing.
The development came after the prosecutor launched a preliminary investigation on Tuesday morning.
On Monday night, TV show Quotidien claimed the minister, who used to head the Socialist parliamentary group, gave his daughters short-term contracts between 2009 and 2016 during their summer holidays.
They were students of 15 and 16 when they first worked for their father and did so while at school and later at college. They were reportedly paid a total of €55,000 ($60,000).
Trade and Tourism Minister Matthias Fekl was named the new interior minister.
