Iceland Government Coalition Appoints Johannsson As New PM: Progressive Party MP

Iceland Appoints New PM After Predecessor Stepped Aside Over 'Panama' Leak
People demonstrate against Iceland's Prime Minister Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson in Reykjavik, Iceland April 5, 2016
People demonstrate against Iceland's Prime Minister Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson in Reykjavik, Iceland April 5, 2016
Stringer . / Reuters

REYKJAVIK (Reuters) - Iceland's governing center-right coalition has decided to appoint Sigurdur Ingi Johannsson as new prime minister, Progressive Party MP Hoskuldur Thorhallsson told reporters in parliament on Wednesday.

Johannsson, of the Progressive Party, is the minister of fisheries and agriculture.

The appointment comes after former Prime Minister Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson stepped aside after the so-called Panama Papers leak of documents showed his wife owned a firm with claims on the island's collapsed banks, sparking wide-spread protests.

(Reporting by Ragnhildur Sigurdardottir via Stockholm newsroom; Editing by Alistair Scrutton)

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