<div align="justify">France's justice minister Francois Bayrou, a key ally of President Emmanuel Macron today said he was quitting the government, as his party battles a funding scandal.<br /><br />The small centrist MoDem party, founded by Bayrou, is in an alliance with Macron's 14-month-old Republic on the Move (REM) movement, and Bayrou was one of two Modem ministers in the cabinet.<br /><br />Macron has been carrying out a partial reshuffle of his month-old government following parliamentary elections that handed him and his MoDem allies a commanding majority.<br /><br />"I have taken a decision not to be part of the next government," Bayrou said, adding that he would hold a press conference at 5:00 pm (1500 GMT).<br /><br />MoDem is facing allegations it used European parliamentary funds to pay assistants actually based in France.<br /><br />The other MoDem minister, former defence minister Sylvie Goulard, also announced her resignation yesterday.<br /><br />Bayrou was a key backer of Macron's movement during the presidential campaign, and his support was crucial in winning centrist votes for the new president.<br /><br />He has dismissed the allegations of fake jobs in his party.</div>
<div align="justify">France's justice minister Francois Bayrou, a key ally of President Emmanuel Macron today said he was quitting the government, as his party battles a funding scandal.<br /><br />The small centrist MoDem party, founded by Bayrou, is in an alliance with Macron's 14-month-old Republic on the Move (REM) movement, and Bayrou was one of two Modem ministers in the cabinet.<br /><br />Macron has been carrying out a partial reshuffle of his month-old government following parliamentary elections that handed him and his MoDem allies a commanding majority.<br /><br />"I have taken a decision not to be part of the next government," Bayrou said, adding that he would hold a press conference at 5:00 pm (1500 GMT).<br /><br />MoDem is facing allegations it used European parliamentary funds to pay assistants actually based in France.<br /><br />The other MoDem minister, former defence minister Sylvie Goulard, also announced her resignation yesterday.<br /><br />Bayrou was a key backer of Macron's movement during the presidential campaign, and his support was crucial in winning centrist votes for the new president.<br /><br />He has dismissed the allegations of fake jobs in his party.</div>