Slovakia’s president has appointed a new prime minister a week after the previous government fell in a crisis precipitated by the murder of an investigative journalist and his fiancée.

President Andrej Kiska appointed Peter Pellegrini as a replacement for Robert Fico, who was brought down amid allegations of links between politicians and Italy’s ‘Ndrangheta mafia, which has established a presence in the former Communist country.

Earlier this week the president rejected an initial cabinet line-up presented by Mr Pellegrini, but he relented on Thursday after a new candidate for interior minister was put forward.

The post will be filled by Tomas Drucker, a former health minister with extensive experience of crisis management.

It will be his task to oversee the investigation into the murder of Jan Kuciak, who was investigating links between organized crime and politicians when he was gunned down with his 27-year-old girlfriend, Martina Kusnirova, at their home outside Bratislava, the capital.