Minister of Agriculture Kęstutis Navickas and Health Minister Arūnas Dulkys are absent from the new list of Cabinet members.
Šimonytė nominated MP Kazys Starkevičius, chair of the Seimas Committee on Economics, as next agriculture minister and Deputy Health Minister Aurimas Pečkauskas as health minister.
In her statement, Šimonytė underlined she trusted all the currently serving ministers. All of them could continue their work until the end of the Government’s mandate, she noted.
„Despite that, two colleagues and I agreed on the changes. I appreciate the work of both Arūnas and Kęstutis in the past three and a half years, despite the difficult challenges in the areas they have been in charge of, and despite the constant criticism, some of which has been more of a personal nature rather than constructive remarks,“ the prime minister said.
Last week, on Monday, President Nausėda signed a decree appointing Šimonytė as prime minister and instructing her to form a new Cabinet and submit it for approval within 15 days.
Nausėda has repeatedly said there are specific ministers who, in his view, could be replaced following the return of the Government’s mandate after his re-election as president.
He reiterated on Wednesday, hours before a meeting with Šimonytė, that the right-wing Government needs change „to ensure a quality debate on next year’s budget.“