Posted on 05/17/2007 2:45:22 AM PDT by Cincinna
PARIS, May 17, 2007 (AFP)
- French President Nicolas Sarkozy Thursday named Francois Fillon, a loyal advisor and moderate right-winger, as prime minister to steer through his promised social and economic reforms.
The 53-year-old senator for the ruling UMP party, who worked closely with Sarkozy on his election campaign, is seen as a safe pair of hands whose experience of pensions reform will be a key asset to the new government.
Sarkozy's office announced the appointment after the two men met for a working breakfast at the Elysee palace, one day after the right-winger took over as head of state from Jacques Chirac.
A handover ceremony with Dominique de Villepin, head of government since mid-2005, was scheduled at 0900 GMT at Matignon, the official residence of the prime minister.
Sarkozy and Fillon were to unveil their cabinet on Friday.
The 15-member government is expected to include prominent Socialist Bernard Kouchner, founder of the Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders) charity, as foreign minister.
Sarkozy has also promised that about half the ministers will be women.
The new French leader renewed his reform vow when he assumed power on Wednesday.
"There is a demand for change. Never have the risks of inertia been so great for France as they are now in this world in flux where everyone across the world is trying to change quicker than the others, where any delay can be fatal," he said.
Fillon made his mark as a reformer as social affairs minister under Chirac, from 2002 to 2004, when he overhauled France's pension system, facing down million-strong street protests.
Jogging partners throughout the election campaign, Fillon's friendship with Sarkozy dates back to the 1990s but he threw all of his energy into building up the Sarkozy electoral machine after losing his government post in a reshuffle in 2005.
His low-key demeanour is often described as complementary to Sarkozy's hyper-active side. But like Sarkozy, Fillon embraces a can-do attitude to politics, rejecting the view that France is unreformable.
Fillon will lead Sarkozy's Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) into parliamentary elections in June aiming for the majority needed to push through the reforms in the eurozone's second largest economy. Most opinion polls say the UMP will easily win that majority.
After studying political science and law, Fillon began his career as a parliamentary attache and was first elected deputy for his home region of Sarthe in 1981, becoming the youngest member of the National Assembly.
He served as higher education minister from 1993 to 1995 and as minister for postal services and telecommunications from 1995 to 1997 and was elected senator for the Sarthe department in 2005.
Fillon is married to Penelope Clarke, a Welsh woman whom he met in his mid-20s. The couple have five children.
Sarkozy, who was elected on May 6, was expected on Friday to announce the full government lineup.
The 15-member government was predicted to include prominent Socialist and humanitarian Bernard Kouchner, founder of the Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders) charity, as foreign minister.
Defence Minister Michele Alliot-Marie could be named interior minister while former prime minister Alain Juppe is expected to be at the helm of a new super-ministry for environment, sustainable development, energy and transport.
The popular former employment minister Jean-Louis Borloo is expected to become minister for economic strategy, business and employment, spearheading the drive for economic reform.
Sarkozy has promised to appoint seven or eight women ministers in the first French government to have gender parity.
High-profile appointments are expected to include his campaign spokeswomen Rachida Dati, a 41-year-old tipped for the justice ministry, who would also be the first politician of North African origin to hold a major French government post.
Sarkozy's campaign director Claude Gueant was Wednesday named to the powerful post of secretary general of the Elysee, becoming his effective right-hand man.
Got to be an improvement over Pepe le Pew but how much of one?
He was brilliant in Firefly, but will he make a good President?
I'll say that was a wise appointment if Rachida Dati denounces Sharia Law.
Until then, I will vote that was a terrible choice for Justice Minister.
just so we can tell ‘em apart, the MSM has made a differentiation:
“Fillon... moderate right-winger”
“Sarkozy... the right-winger”
Here’s the capsule bio of the new justice minister, translated by google. My French is a bit rusty, but I have confirmed that “it” is actually an “elle” or “she.”
Nothing about her religion, but she looks like a fast-track French establishment type from her bio.
More on Rachida Dati from the New Economist. I think this has been translated from English to French and then back into English, but it makes at least some sense.
That didn’t work. You have to go down to the footnote and click on it to see it.
“Yes sir, Capt. Tightpants”
... Now that a real leader is in place, rather than a socialist pissant (er, pissed-on) the Islamic rioters that were threatened by the outgoing “peace” party never did surface AFTER the election, did they?
See, the Islamic rioters now know that rioting and destroying cars (and it would be interesting to find out how many cars were destroyed in Iraq by Islamic terrorists disguised as civilians in 4 years and how many were destroyed by Islamic terrorists disguised as teenagers in 4 years ...) WILL BE stopped by force.
Magic: No more riots.
"Fillon made his mark as a reformer as social affairs minister under Chirac, from 2002 to 2004, when he overhauled France's pension system, facing down million-strong street protests."
A good start. Sarkozy as interior minister was no slouch, either.
yitbos
Bought a NICE bottle of French wine this morning.
Very good. I bought a case of Margaut last week. I'll be celebrating Sarkozy for the next few years.
How about SABINE!
Sabine Herold is the editor and spokeswoman for Liberté j'écris ton nom (Liberty, I Write Your Name), a think tank and activist organization at the forefront of a new and growing pro-liberty movement in France.
Herold and Liberté j'écris ton nom came to prominence last summer when the organization led two anti-government-union rallies in Paris, the second of which attracted a phenomenal eighty thousand protesters.
A passionate speaker and essayist, Herold promotes liberty from a moral, ethical point of view — namely, from the standpoint of individual responsibility and the right of every individual to make his or her own decisions.
Interview here.
Well one can hope...
Sarkozy looks like he is living up to his promises.
Rachida Dati was Sarko’s cheif spokesman during the entire campaign. She is one of his closest collaborators.
She is French, born in France to a French Algerian mother, and a French moroccan father.
She is a lifelong member of the RPR and UMP, poartiens of the Right in France.
It is irresponsable to lump all people with Maghreb ancestry together. She is anti-Islamist, anti-terrorists, and totally supports French Law, not Sharia Law. There have never been any questions of this kind posed about Rachida Dati. What are you talking about?
Thank you for the distinction. I guess his new first name is “right-winger”, not “Nicolas” or “President”.
That’s totally inappropriate. Because she’s of north-african descent doesnot mean she’s a hard line muslim.
She wouldnot be part of Sarkozy’s staff if that was the case, havent seen her wearing the burqa either xD
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