PARIS
France's new cabinet has held its first meeting chaired by President Francois Hollande.
The 16 cabinet members discussed a "road map" for government in preparation for a presentation of its policies to parliament next Tuesday by new Prime Minister Manuel Valls's.
The French Assembly will hold a vote of confidence on the new cabinet on the same day, said government spokesman Stephane Le Foll.
The meeting included Hollande's former partner and mother of his four children, Segolene Royal, who won a key position in the government as minister for the environment, charged with overseeing ecology, sustainable development and energy.
The position is the second most senior one in Hollande's self-declared "fighting government" after that of Laurent Fabius, who retains the foreign affairs portfolio.
An opinion poll released one day after Valls, the former Interior Minister, unveiled the new cabinet, revealed that less than half of respondents had confidence in him and the cabinet.
Spanish-born Valls was appointed prime minister on Monday in a government reshuffle following the ruling Socialists' heavy defeat in local elections on Sunday.
Along with president Holland, he appointed a slimmed-down team compared to the previous 38-member cabinet of Jean-Marc Ayrault.
With Eurostat recording French unemployment at 10.4 percent, just below the European Union average - and growth drifting at close to zero for the past two years - boosting economic growth, lowering taxes and cutting back in public spending will be one of the main challenges for Valls and his new cabinet.
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