Paris (AFP)

High Commissioner for Pensions Jean-Paul Delevoye, who threw in the towel on Monday, has been the 12th minister to resign - and the 16th to leave - since the start of Macron's presidency in May 2017.

Seven ministers had already had to resign in less than a year and a half, a concentration of departures unprecedented at the start of the mandate compared to François Hollande, Nicolas Sarkozy or Jacques Chirac.

- Richard Ferrand and the Mutuelles de Bretagne -

Barely appointed Minister of Territorial Cohesion, Richard Ferrand is struck by the Duck chained which reveals that in 2011 the Mutuals of Brittany, which he then directed, had decided to rent commercial premises belonging to his companion.

The Brest prosecutor opened a preliminary investigation in June 2017. Mr. Ferrand denied any irregularity but announced on June 19 that he was leaving the government to run for the presidency of the LREM group in the National Assembly.

In October, the Brest public prosecutor's office closed its investigation without follow-up, invoking the prescription in the event of a possible offense of illegal taking of interests and holding that the offenses of breach of trust and fraud were "not established" .

Richard Ferrand takes over from François de Rugy as President of the Assembly on September 12, 2018.

He was indicted for "illegal taking of interests" on the night of September 11 to 12, 2019 by three Lille investigating judges following a complaint filed by Anticor.

- The MoDem and its parliamentary assistants -

In March 2017, the Paris prosecutor's office opened a preliminary investigation for "breach of trust" in a case of alleged fictitious jobs in the European Parliament targeting 19 MEPs, including two from MoDem: Robert Rochefort and Marielle de Sarnez.

Radio France affirms that between 2009 and 2014 ten employees of the centrist party chaired by François Bayrou were at the same time collaborators of the European deputies of the MoDem, for the benefit in particular of Marielle de Sarnez, become Minister of European Affairs, and Sylvie Goulard, Minister of the Armies .

On June 9, 2017, the justice system announced the opening of an investigation for "breach of trust". On June 21, Ms. Goulard left the government, followed by Minister of Justice François Bayrou and Ms. de Sarnez.

On November 29 and December 4, 2019, Sylvie Goulard and Marielle de Sarnez are indicted for "embezzlement of public funds". And on December 6, François Bayrou was in turn for "complicity in misappropriation of public funds".

- Nicolas Hulot gives up -

Minister of the Ecological and Inclusive Transition, Nicolas Hulot announces on August 28, 2018 that he is leaving the government, deploring isolation on his files and an excessive influence of lobbies on the Elysée. He announces his decision on the radio, without notifying the executive.

François de Rugy replaces him on September 4.

- Laura Flessel and Gérard Collomb -

Sports Minister Laura Flessel announced on September 4, 2018 that she was leaving government for "personal reasons", presumably linked to her husband's tax situation.

Interior Minister Gérard Collomb, who clumsily announced that he would leave the government in 2019 to prepare his candidacy for mayor of Lyon, resigned on October 1, 2018. As Emmanuel Macron refused, he told the press to maintain it, forcing the president to accept it on October 3.

- Reshuffles and voluntary departures -

Two weeks later, on October 16, 2018, the Elysée proceeded to a reshuffle marked by four departures - Françoise Nyssen, Delphine Gény-Stephann, Stéphane Travert and Jacques Mézard - which bring to this date to 11 their total number since the beginning of the Macron era.

Christophe Castaner takes the Interior. Eight new members join the government.

On March 27, 2019, the Elysée Palace announces the departures of ministers Nathalie Loiseau, Benjamin Griveaux and Mounir Mahjoubi, the first for its campaign in the European elections in May and the other two vying for the LREM nomination for the 2020 municipal elections in Paris. On March 31, the Elysée Palace announces the appointments of Sibeth Ndiaye as government spokesperson, Amélie de Montchalin as Secretary of State for European Affairs and Cédric O as Secretary of State for Digital Affairs.

- De Rugy leaves -

On July 16, 2019, the Minister of State for the Ecological Transition François de Rugy resigned after revelations from Mediapart concerning his supposed lavish lifestyle, photos of lobsters and champagne in support.

He then considers himself "whitewashed" by the inquiries of the government and the Assembly concerning the amount of work in his official accommodation at the ministry, and the lavish dinners when he presided over the National Assembly. However, he undertakes to reimburse three of these dinners deemed by the investigation to be "manifestly excessive".

- Delevoye throws in the towel -

In the hot seat for several days, in the midst of a conflict over pension reform, Jean-Paul Delevoye, the government's "Monsieur pensions", prefers to withdraw and his resignation is accepted "with regret" by Emmanuel Macron.

Mr. Delevoye had admitted having failed to declare his position as a voluntary administrator in an insurance training institute, Ifpass, and this weekend corrected his declaration of interests by declaring 13 terms, including 11 volunteers, ten more than the initial version.

Mr. Delevoye had also cumulated his governmental function with that, remunerated, of president of Parallaxe, an institute of reflection on education, cumulation declared but not authorized, what he says to have learned then.

© 2019 AFP