French President Francois Hollande's last ministerial reshuffle before a bid next year for re-election could come in February, government spokesman Stephane Le Foll indicated on Sunday.
On February 10, the lower house of the French parliament is due to vote on a controversial constitutional reform bill.
A reshuffle will not happen before that, but a likely trigger for one comes soon after. The head of the Constitutional Court overseeing government legislation is due to retire in March, and Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius is seen as the favourite to be named in February as his replacement.
"If there is a reshuffle, it will be after the 10th, around that time," said Le Foll, who is also agriculture minister, in an interview with Europe 1 radio and news channel iTele.
A cabinet shake-up over the coming weeks has been widely predicted by French political commentators. Fabius' likely departure is one trigger. Another could be Hollande seeking to re-energise his unpopular government ahead of the election.
Hollande was already forced to make a cabinet change last week when Justice Minister Christiane Taubira, a champion of the left, quit over the constitutional reform bill.
The change would allow some people convicted of terrorism to be stripped of their French citizenship - part of France's response to November's attacks in Paris.
Taubira has been replaced by Jean-Jacques Urvoas, regarded as more supportive of Prime Minister Manuel Valls and Hollande. Le Foll declined to comment on the possible scope of a further reshuffle.
The debate over stripping of citizenship, with arguments often centred on whether this should apply solely to dual-nationality citizens, has exacerbated tensions with Hollande's left-wing allies.
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