Sarkozy goes for gold to get France back on its feet

Date: 06/05/04

FRANCE'S new Finance Minister Nicolas Sarkozy, a man who would like President Jacques Chirac's job, staked his growing political reputation this week on a promise to sort out his country's public finances.

The golden boy of French politics, Sarkozy charmed TV cameras at a Paris press conference as he outlined his economic strategy, including a plan to sell gold reserves to cut public debt.

He said he was determined to boost public confidence so that people would spend more of their wages instead of saving them and thus give the economy a badly needed boost. He promised tax breaks for house repairs, for example.

But his message was barbed with economic realism. He pledged to freeze public spending again in 2005 and warned that income tax cuts - a promise made by Chirac - could only continue if they were offset by equivalent reductions in public expenditure.

Sarkozy had been in Brussels earlier in the week to meet Mario Monti, the competition commissioner, to secure approval for a €4.7 billion rescue plan for troubled engineering giant Alstom.

But he was tight-lipped on options facing the firm, which employs 75,000 worldwide.

He did tell reporters, however: "The government's determination to find a permanent solution for Alstom is total."

Report of a press conference given by France's new Finance Minister, Nicolas Sarkozy. Mr Sarkozy has promised to 'sort out' his country's finances.