Ex-EU lawmaker Goulard named to French central bank post

PARIS, Jan 17 (Reuters) - Former EU lawmaker Sylvie Goulard was named deputy governor of the French central bank on Wednesday, putting her in the frontline of European Central Bank policymaking.

Goulard, 53, was a member of the European Parliament from 2009 until French President Emmanuel Macron named her defence minister following his 2017 election victory.

She quit weeks into the job saying that she did not want to stay on in light of an investigation into her centre-right Modem party's affairs in the EU parliament.

In the European Parliament, Goulard was a member of the economic and monetary affairs committee and played a central role in drafting legislation on financial supervision and surveillance of fiscal discipline.

Goulard was named second deputy governor, replacing Denis Beau, who was promoted to first deputy governor, replacing Anne Le Lorier following her retirement.

Goulard will take on Le Lorier's responsibilities representing the Bank of France along with Governor Francois Villeroy de Galhau at the European Central Bank and international meetings like the G7 and G20, the French central bank said.

Her nomination marks the rare arrival of a politician at the French central bank, which tends to fill its upper ranks with technocrats from French civil service or the central bank itself.

The appointment comes ahead of an important period of decision-making in the euro zone with ECB President Mario Draghi scheduled to end his second term in November next year and changes to be made to the bank's powerful executive board.

At a time when the ECB is under pressure to appoint more women, the move could position Goulard to take over from France's Benoit Coeure when he leaves the board in 2019.

There are just two women on the ECB´s 25-member governing council and one on its six-member board. (Reporting by Leigh Thomas; additional reporting by Noah Barkin in Berlin and Myriam Rivet; editing by John Irish)

Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article.