Röttgen
is
replaced
by
Peter
Altmaier,
a
close
ally
of
Chancellor
Angela
Merkel
and
chief
whip
in
her
parliamentary
party.
Röttgen
left
his
post
today
–
apparently
at
the
Chancellor's
request
–
after
disastrous
local
elections
for
Merkel’s
Christian
Democrats
in
North
Rhine-Westphalia,
where
he
stood
as
state
leader
but
was
trounced
by
opponents.
Former
Merkel
favourite
Röttgen
was
made
Minister
for
the
Environment,
Nature
Conservation
and
Nuclear
Safety
–
a
sweeping
cabinet
position
created
in
the
wake
of
the
Chernobyl
disaster
–
in
2009.
He
was
at
Merkel’s
side
last
June
when
the…
