Embattled Romanian premier to reshuffle cabinet, says minister

Sep 2, 2010, 16:50 GMT

Bucharest - Romania's embattled Prime Minister Emil Boc is set to reshuffle his cabinet and replace the heads of key ministries, Agriculture Minister Mihail Dumitru said Thursday.

Dumitru told reporters after meeting Boc that he was one of several cabinet ministers due to be sacked. The transport, finance and labour ministers - Radu Berceanu, Sebastian Vladescu and Mihai Seitan, respectively - were also summoned by Boc on Thursday.

Local observers estimate that Boc is trying to improve the image of his government, which is increasingly unpopular due to austerity measures it was forced to implement.

Bucharest agreed upon the spending cuts, including layoffs of tens of thousands of bureaucrats and cut public sector wages by 25 per cent, in order to secure a 20-billion-euro (25-billion-dollar) bailout from the International Monetary Fund the European Union.

Apart from losing popular support, Boc has also come under pressure within his own Democratic-Liberal Party, where he was criticized over his austerity measures and overall leadership.