Bernard Cazeneuve, currently French interior minister, will replace Manuel Valls as the country's new prime minister, President Francois Hollande's office said.

"He's a strong personality, with experience of state affairs," said a source in the president's entourage, commenting on Cazeneuve's appointment.

Valls is stepping down in order to seek the Socialist Party's nomination to be its presidential candidate in the 2017 election.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.