Members of the opposition say the string of high-profile ministerial resignations have chipped away at the French President’s authority and exposed his lack of political clout.
The government rejig, which had been expected on Tuesday, will take place after the 40-year-old is back from a trip to Armenia at the end of the week.
Mr Macron “takes full and complete responsibility for the extra time needed to form a new cabinet,” government spokesman Benjamin Griveaux said, as he attempted to brush off rumours the centrist administration is in disarray.
The reshuffle was prompted by the resignation of interior minister Gérard Collomb last week, the third minister to resign in less than two months.
Mr Griveaux, a member of Mr Macron’s inner circle, said: “Mr Macron has made clear that his ministers are not trinkets needed to adorn shelves, but people with whom he needs to have a sustained dialogue before deciding whether to assign them to the important task of transforming the country.”
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Ministers must be “competent and professional,” Mr Griveaux continued as he defended the delay, before stressing there had been no “division” between Mr Macron and his team over his political line.
The ministers who left did so for personal reasons rather than over political disagreements, he stressed.
Later in the day the Elysée Palace issued a statement reiterating Mr Griveaux comments, in which it denied claims Mr Macron and his conservative Prime Minister Edouard Philippe were locked in a “power struggle” over the government overhaul.
The Elysée Palace added: “It is precisely because there is no conflict between them that the [reshuffle] is taking longer than expected. ‘Division’ is much too strong of a word.”
But while Mr Collomb’s departure has given Mr Macron the opportunity to breathe new life into his administration, the reshuffle has raised questions about his ability to keep his government on track.
Mr Macron’s political rivals say that the resignations have challenged his authority and branded the reshuffle a “mockery” that has shone a harsh spotlight on the young leader’s lack of political experience.
They have also criticised the absence of an interior minister as a sign of weakness in light of the ongoing terror threat.
Valerie Boyer of the conservative Les Républicains party said: “That they cannot replace the interior minister highlights chaos inside the Macron administration. Either there’s a lack of names or a lack of candidates who the president can trust and who will stay loyal to his programme.”
Mr Philippe is in charge of France’s domestic security in the interim.
While Mr Macron does not face re-election until spring 2022, European Parliament elections in May next year and municipal voting in France in 2020 could turn into a referendum on his mid-term performance.