Chirac reshuffles French government

FOREIGN Minister Dominique de Villepin, a relentless critic of the US war in Iraq, will head the Interior Ministry under a French government shake-up announced last night.

Charismatic De Villepin, France's top diplomat since May 2002, will be replaced by European Commissioner Michel Barnier, the presidential Elysee Palace announced.

The current interior minister, the highly popular Nicolas Sarkozy, becomes head of the Finance Ministry, replacing Francis Mer but his role could expand to encompass command of ambitious but controversial reform programmes.