Romania's former environment minister excluded from co-governing party

Romania’s former environment minister Daniel Constantin, as well as two MPs, Mircea Banias and Eugen Durbaca, were excluded yesterday from the co-governing party ALDE. The announcement was made by the ALDE deputy president Andrei Gerea, reports local News.ro. The exclusions are the result of a weeks-long conflict between Daniel Constantin and the ALDE president Catalin Popescu-Tariceanu. The ALDE Executive Political Bureau decided last Thursday to propose to the Permanent Delegation the removal of Daniel Constantin from the party. Tariceanu advised those who had submitted challenges in court to withdraw them, otherwise they would also be excluded. Daniel Constantin was environment minister in the Sorin Grindeanu cabinet, but he was replaced with Gratiela Gravrilescu at the end of March, after he had lost his party’s political support. The conflict started when Daniel Constatin, who was the co-president of ALDE at that time, complained that Tariceanu only consults with the Social Democrat leader Liviu Dragnea, without consulting the members of its own party. editor@romania-insider.com