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You are here: Home » Politics + Society » Archive » January 2008-1
POLITICS AND SOCIETY NEWS AND EVENTS ARCHIVE JANUARY 2008-1
Archives: January 1-7 , 2008
Sarkozy Poll Ratings Fall on Economy Worries
Reuters. Jan. 7, 2008
French President Sarkozy has suffered a seven-point drop in his
approval ratings, mainly because of worries over the economy, according
to an opinion poll published in the newspaper Le Parisien on Jan. 6,
2008. The poll, carried out by the CSA polling institute, showed the
percentage of those expressing confidence in Sarkozy fell to 48 percent
in January 2008 from 55 percent in December 2007, while those
expressing no confidence rose by seven points to 45 percent.
> More
Sarkozy’s ex-wife penning memoirs?
UKTimes. Jan. 7, 2008
Cecilia Sarkozy is rumoured to be writing a book about her life with
the French president. The project is surrounded with secrecy because
Cecilia’s last book was thwarted when Sarkozy ordered the publisher to
destroy the entire print run. With Sarkozy rumored to be marrying his
new girflriend Carla Bruni, the memoir project is causing concern in
the presidential entourage.
> More
Sarkozy’s Bruni may be a love-child
DailyMail. Jan. 7, 2008
Carla Bruni, the former supermodel tipped to marry President Sarkozy,
may not be her father’s daughter. The story from Brazil is that her
real father was not tycoon Alberto Bruni Tedeschi but a different
Italian businessman called Maurizio Remmert, 30 years Alberto's junior,
who is said to have had an affair with Bruni’s wife, resulting in
Carla's birth on December 23, 1967.
> More
Profile: Bertrand Delanoë, Paris’s ambitious gay mayor
Observer. Jan. 7, 2008
Bertrand Delanoë, the elegant, openly gay mayor of Paris has won over
his city with economic restraint and bold ideas - including bike
rentals and a beach on the Seine. The 57-year-old has brutally
effective political instincts, a vicious streak, and ambition. Could he
be France’s next President?
> More
Wedding bells for Sarkozy and Bruni?
AFP. Jan. 7. 2008
French President Sarkozy will marry his new girlfriend, the former
model turned singer Carla Bruni, claims the Journal du Dimanche. The
couple are believed to have set a wedding date for either February 8 or
9, 2008.
> More
Chirac was plagued by illness and Sarkoz's ambition
AFP. Jan. 6, 2008
Jacques Chirac’s final years in power were dogged by aging, ill health
and bitter resentment of his young rival Nicolas Sarkozy, who he never
believed would be elected French president, a new book reveals. In Des
Hommes d’Etat (Statesmen), to be released next week, senior civil
servant Bruno Le Maire publishes the daily notes he took between 2005
and 2007, the last of Chirac’s 12 years as president, when he was
cabinet chief to prime minister Dominique de Villepin, who dubbed
Sarkozy “Tom Cruise,” for his viator glasses.
> More
Binge drinking: Britain vs. France
Telegraph. Jan. 6, 2008
Why are the French seemingly so capable at holding their drink while
the British are not? The social taboo against appearing drunk in public
is powerful in France, who have cut per capita alcohol consumption
pretty much in half over the past 30 years. But some French fear that
“Anglo-Saxon” style binge drinking will make inroads in France. (HT: FrenchJournal).
> More
French approve of smoking ban
Businessweek. Jan. 6, 2008
Of the estimated 20% of the French population that smokes—down from 45%
some 15 years ago—half die from smoking-related illnesses, according to
the Health Ministry. Polls show two-thirds of people support the
current public smoking ban. The law took effect Jan. 1, with a one-day
grace period of nonenforcement, the final phase of a 2006 prohibition
on smoking in public places and offices mandated under former President
Jacques Chirac. Smokers caught in violation of the law face fines of up
to $662, while business owners who permit smoking on their premises may
be charged as much as $1,100.
> More
Dubai to get its own French city
AFP. Jan. 6, 2008
France and the Middle East are cementing their love affair. After Abu
Dhabi's deal for its own Louvre museum, Dubai plans to build an ersatz
version of Lyon, complete with cafes, cinemas and schools, according to
Lyon officials. Due to be completed by 2012, the 800 acre / $740
million dollar project is the brainchild of a Dubai entrepreneur who
fell in love with Lyon after travelling there as part of plans for a
French-language university in Dubai in partnership with Lyon-2
university.
> More
Sarkozy is Jewish Press’s “Personality of the Year”
EJP. Jan. 4, 2008
French President Nicolas Sarkozy was choosen as “European Personality
of the Year 2007” by European Jewish Press (EJP) readers. “Sarkozy, who
lost 57 members of his family to the Nazis, comes from a long line of
Jewish and Zionist leaders and heroes. His mother was born to the
Mallah family, one of the oldest Jewish families of Salonika in
Greece,” writes the EJP.
> More
Sarko and Bruni on the Beach
Frogsmoke/TMZ. Jan. 4, 2008
Thanks to Frogsmoke
and TMZ for posting photos of Sarkozy and consort Carla Bruni cavorting
on a Red Sea beach. No “la Belle et la Bête” jokes, please.
> More
Report cards for French Government
Time. Jan. 4, 2008
In the coming months, members of Sarkozy's cabinet will undergo
quarterly evaluations by examiners from a private company assessing
each one's productivity based on policy objectives laid out when they
assumed office. The laggards in Class Sarko won't be held back the way
underperforming students do; instead, they could lose their ministerial
seats. This is the first time French politicians have been held to the
same standards as the hundreds of thousands of French state employees,
who receive annual written evaluations from their supervisors.
> More
French retail laws hurt consumers
Economist. Jan. 4, 2008
In Europe generally and in France particularly, every aspect of
retailing is strictly controlled by law. Discounts or sales are
forbidden or regulated, and it is illegal to open stores on Sunday.
Reforms are difficult because of vested interests and coalition
politics. Unlike Americans, Europeans seem willing to pay more and have
less convenient shopping hours, in order to protect small shops from
big chains.
> More
French grab cars to beat pollution laws
Reuters. Jan. 4, 2008
A 21.2 percent jump in December sales driven by big cars, just ahead of
a new CO2 levy on the most polluting cars, helped France to register
3.2 percent more new cars in 2007 than in 2006. In early December, the
government announced penalties for car pollution, from 200 to 2,600
euros ($3,813) per vehicle, that would be applied towards the end of
the year.
> More
French cars hold half the Gallic market
Reuters. Dec. 4, 2008
French carmakers like Peugot, Citroen, and Renault saw their market
share drop to below 50 percent in December 2007, to 45.5 percent. Big
rises were posted by makers of cars such as BMW, Daimler, Hyundai and
Ford. For the year as a whole, the French firms held on to 51.8 percent
of the market which was down from 54.3 percent in 2006.
> More
Airbus will probably beat Boeing in 2007
AP. Jan. 4, 2008
Boeing Co. blew past an order record it set two years ago, selling
1,413 commercial jets in 2007 while delivering 441 planes, its best
showing in six years. Analysts expect Boeing’s French rival Airbus to
come out ahead on both orders and deliveries when they release their
2007 order and delivery totals in two weeks.
> More
French labour reforms “useless”
WallStreet Journal. Jan. 4, 2008
President Sarkozy's plans to liberalize the 35-hour work week are being
panned by France's small and medium-size business community, alleging
red tape and paperwork make the changes too complicated and costly.
“We're spending all our time working out how to implement these
measures without having any time to evaluate the effects," said one
employer.
> More
French call for stronger “eurodiplomacy”
BBC. Jan. 4, 2008
The French European Affairs Secretary, Jean-Pierre Jouyet, said the
15-nation eurozone needed better governance and better international
representation.
"Just as there is a diplomacy of the dollar, we should have a diplomacy
of the euro," he wrote in France's Le Monde newspaper. France takes
over the EU's rotating presidency in July, after Slovenia.
> More
Sarkozy’s changes face economic and social resistance
Economist. Jan 4, 2008
France looks forward to more controversial reforms and more protests,
all at a time when the European economy is slowing due to the global
credit crunch. Sarkozy may have to nuance his attempts to bully French
economic growth into reality.
> More
French state profits from tobacco despite ban
Atlantic. Jan. 3, 2008
France recently banned smoking in cafes but the prohibition is
paradoxical because the French government owns the nation's
cigarette-manufacturing monopoly SEITA (for Societe d'Exploitation
Industrielle des Tabacs et Allumettes), which generated 31 billion
francs ($5.48 billion) in 1990 tax revenues--some 2.3 percent of the
national budget--plus an operating profit of $66.7 million. Overall, 38
percent of people in France smoke and 61,000 French men and women die
of tobacco-related disease annually.
> More
French back Sarkozy on safety, environment
AngusReidPolls. Jan. 3, 2008
Adults in France are satisfied with the way their current
administration policies to combat unemployment and integrate immigrants
according to a poll by Ifop published in Ouest-France Dimanche. More
than 50 per cent of respondents have confidence in the government’s
ability to foster public safety and protect the environment.
> More
France's Royal confirms bid for Socialist leadership
Forbes. Jan. 3, 2008
Segolene Royal confirmed on Thursday that she intends to run for the
leadership of France's Socialist party this year, laying the
foundations for a possible new presidential bid in 2012. “I plan to see
through to the end what I started in this presidential campaign, to
renovate the left,” she told France 2 television.
> More
French PM promises big reforms this year in effort to reach 3 pct
Forbes. Jan. 3, 2008
French prime minister Francois Fillon said 2008 will see his government
embark on 'major economic and social changes' as part of its aim of
achieving 'an extra point in (GDP) growth'. 'We are entering the heart
of the matter: reform of the labour market, reform of our economy,
reform of the state, reform of the institutions, reform of taxation,
reform of our health system,' Fillon was quoted as saying in a New
Year's statement.
> More
Sarkozy rejiggers awards list
UKIndependant. Jan. 3, 2008
President Nicolas Sarkozy has rejected the country's New Year honours
list. The proposals for Légion d'Honneur and the Ordre Nationale du
Mérite, put forward by ministries were, he said, too dominated by men,
state employees, politicians, and whites. He has asked for candidates
who reflect "French diversity" and more people from businesses and
charitable associations.
Ministers are preparing new lists crafted to reflect Sarkozy’s
priorities. The whole revisionist exercise demonstrates the randomness,
favoritism, and subjectivity of the French award system.
> More
France warns against excessive mobile phone use
Reuters. Jan. 3, 2008
The French Health Ministry issued a warning against excessive mobile
phone use, especially by children. The appearance on the market of
mobile phones designed for children has raised concern since youngsters
would be particularly vulnerable to any possible health effects. So
far, governments are denying cell phones pose a health risk, but many
tests suggest cell phone microwaves pose a cancer risk in lab animals.
> More
Hunger strike in France to protest gene-altered crops
IHT. Jan. 3, 2008
The militant French environmentalist José Bové and as many as 15 of his
supporters were expected to begin a hunger strike Thursday aimed at
raising pressure on the French government to impose a long-term ban on
growing genetically modified crops. The latest protest against altered
crops comes as divisions over the potential benefits of the technology
appear to be deepening across the region.
> More
Paris offers electric car rentals
UKTimes. Jan. 3, 2008
The Mayor of Paris is about to launch another novel scheme for fighting
congestion and pollution: self-service cars. The scheme will start with
2,000 electric-powered vehicles that subscribers can use for a few
euros per hour, without booking at dozens of sites 24 hours a day and
then leave anywhere in the city. It is intended to complement the
Vélib, the highly successful bicycle scheme that Mr Delanöe opened last
July with 5,000 rental stations around the city.
> More
Sarkozy galvanizes friends and enemies alike
UKGuardian. Jan. 2, 2008
France suffered a mood of malaise and moroseness before the
presidential election. Then, along came Sarkozy with his punchy ideas
for the country's revitalisation and his rollercoaster emotional life
lived in full view of an astonished public. His style has caused France
to be temporarily distracted from its economic, racial, and social
woes. But how long can bread and circuses numb a traditionally
sceptical and rebellious populus?
> More
French say Sarkozy-Bruni affair is “private”
Angus Reid Global Monitor. Jan. 2, 2008
Few adults in France are truly interested in their president’s current
association with a former model. According to a poll by Ifop, 89 per
cent of French respondents think the relationship between Nicolas
Sarkozy and Carla Bruni is a private matter.
> More
France is an “extensive surveillance society”
AP. Jan. 2, 2008
Human rights group Privacy International has released its 2007 rankings
for countries’ privacy protection. Worst are the USA, Russia, and
Britian, delcared to be “endemic surveillance societies.” Second worse
are countries like France and India declared to be “extensive
surveillance societies.”
> More
“Only” 273 cars torched on French New Year’s Eve
AP. Jan. 1, 2008
French President Sarkozy thanked police officers and firefighters for
helping decrease the number of run-ins with rowdy New Year's Eve
revelers who have made torching cars an annual problem in the country's
troubled neighborhoods. The Interior Ministry said 273 cars were set
alight overnight on Monday, down nearly 13 percent from the 2006 total
of 313 vehicles.
> More
Sarkozy’s New Year Address
ElyseePalace. Jan. 1, 2008
President Sarkozy delivered the traditional New Year’s address to the
French nation on Dec. 31, 2007, televised live. He emphasized a
“message of hope” and warned against pessimism, while pledging to
complete his mission to modernize France, which had “fallen behind the
pace of the world,” and to lead a "Renaissance in the Old World."
> More
//end
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