Latvia Wednesday selected a new prime minister to lead the country until elections are held in October with Laimdota Straujuma promising to carry on with her predecessor's strict budget discipline. According to dpa, Straujuma is the country's first female premier. Straujuma had previously served as Latvia's agriculture minister. Her appointment as prime minister was confirmed by parliament Wednesday. She replaces Valdis Dombrovskis, who resigned in November over the deadly collapse of a supermarket roof. Her coalition controls 66 seats in the 100-member parliament. Her cabinet features seven new ministers although Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics and Finance Minister Andris Vilks kept their posts.
