French Foreign Minister: regrets new rebel party but LREM majority not in danger

French Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on Tuesday it was a "pity" that rebels had defected from President Emmanuel Macron's ruling LREM party to form a new group, but that he felt Macron's majority remained safe.

"I think it's a pity," Le Drian told LCI television, while adding that nevertheless Macron and Prime Minister Edouard Philippe could still count on the support of allies such as the 'MODEM' centrist party.

"In any case, it does not call into question the majority of Emmanuel Macron, nor the majority of Edouard Philippe, which remain very strong," he said.