FRANCE
Sarkozy dips in polls amid economy woes
Thursday, January 31, 2008
French President Nicolas Sarkozy took a beating in the latest opinion polls, following his perceived failure to deliver on promises to boost the economy and improve spending power.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
By AFP
President Nicolas Sarkozy is taking a beating in the polls, his popularity dropping to its lowest level since he took office as the French grow increasingly worried about their pocketbooks.
Eight months after he was elected on a promise to shake up the economy, Sarkozy's approval rating has dropped sharply to 41 percent, losing eight points in a month, according to a TNS-Sofres poll to be released at the weekend.
The fall comes amid a gloomy economic outlook and ahead of municipal elections in March that the opposition Socialists are casting as a referendum on Sarkozy's presidency.
The latest tumble prompted the popular Le Parisien newspaper on Thursday to proclaim "Sarkozy in a freefall" and that "the time for disappointment with Sarkozy has come."
The TNS-Sofres poll to be published in Le Figaro magazine shows 41 percent of the French still trust the president compared to 55 percent who have lost faith -- pushing Sarkozy deep into negative ratings.
A second poll by the CSA institute showed 52 percent felt Sarkozy's policies were "headed in the wrong direction" even though the president gets high marks on international diplomacy.
Driving the drop in popularity is the perception that Sarkozy is not delivering on his promise to rev up the economy, in particular spending power which topped surveys of voters' most pressing concern during the campaign.
"Why is the president plummeting in the polls? Because the French people are impatient, they want results," said deputy Frederic Lefebvre from Sarkozy's governing Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) party.
Parliament on Thursday adopted a law on boosting spending power that includes a measure that would allow workers to trade for cash holidays accrued under the 35-hour workweek scheme.
Sarkozy earlier this month admitted he had little leverage to boost consumer spending, saying the "state coffers are empty" and that the government should not be expected to come up with a hand-out.
The remarks marked a climbdown for Sarkozy who had vowed to be the "president who delivers on purchasing power" during his campaign as well as promising to bring down unemployment and boost economic growth.
"When he was a candidate for office, the president left himself exposed on this issue," commented Mathieu Kaiser, an analyst with BNP Paribas.
"There are expectations but it is also a situation that the government does not completely have under its control," he said.
Economic growth, which the government had forecast for 2008 at two percent, is expected to be limited to 1.4-1.6 percent, in line with the expected slowdown in Europe, according to economists.
French consumer confidence meanwhile plummeted to an all-time low in January while inflation went up, with consumers especially hard hit by rising prices for real estate, fuel and food.
As the French were fretting over their hard-won euros, photos of Sarkozy on vacation with his new girlfriend Carla Bruni last month irked voters who felt the president was more interested in romance than in the affairs of the state.
Over the past month, the hyper-active president has sought to seize back the initiative, with a series of trips across France to discuss pocketbook woes and show he is tackling the issue.
Le Monde quoted unnamed presidential aides as saying that Sarkozy, who won a convincing victory in May over Socialist Segolene Royal, must "get back to basics" and revive the straight-talking style of his campaign.
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DAVID CROSSAN
31/01/08 6pm GMT+1 FR 24 French politics editor
- DAVID CROSSAN
- 31/01/08 6pm GMT+1 FR 24 French politics editor
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