France's widely lampooned environment minister denied having a taste for th...
PARIS - France’s widely lampooned environment minister denied having a taste for the high life and said on Friday he would not resign over accusations he squandered taxpayer money, in a scandal that risks upsetting the government’s reform drive.
The episode has reinforced perceptions of an out-of-touch government at a time President Emmanuel Macron, shaken by the “yellow vest” revolt over inequality, is already fighting a “president of the rich” tag for his pro-business policies. He said he never asked the parliament’s chefs to serve lobster. “I don’t like it, I don’t eat it, I have an intolerance for shellfish,” said De Rugy. “I don’t like oysters ... I hate caviar and champagne gives me a headache.”
A drawn-out media scandal over De Rugy’s lifestyle would limit his ability to push through reforms such as the restructuring of state-owned utility EDF and new taxes on carbon emissions from cars, trucks and airplanes.
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