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Sarko Backs Down on Public Sector Cuts

Retreats from promise to trim French civil servant rolls by 50%

By Jason Farago,  Newser Staff

Posted Aug 2, 2007 9:28 AM CDT
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(Newser) – Nicolas Sarkozy has backed down from a campaign pledge to reform the sclerotic French civil service, says the Telegraph. The government has scuppered the president's vow to halve the number of civil servants, which Sarkozy had made a central feature of his policy of "rupture."

PM François Fillon's announcement that only a quarter of fonctionnaires would be cut is the latest of a series of retreats from the major reforms that the hyperactive Sarkozy had promised. His attempts to limit strikes have run into fierce union opposition, and in June he walked away from a planned restructuring of the university system, fearing a student revolt similar to the March, 2006, protests that paralyzed the nation.

New French President Nicolas Sarkozy, right, accompanies back newly named French Prime Minister Francois Fillon after their meeting at the Elysee Palace, in Paris, Thursday, May 17, 2007. President Nicolas Sarkozy on Thursday named reform-minded conservative Francois Fillon as France's new prime minister, and he will form the new government,...
New French President Nicolas Sarkozy, right, accompanies back newly named French Prime Minister Francois Fillon after their meeting at the Elysee Palace, in Paris, Thursday, May 17, 2007. President Nicolas...   (Associated Press)
French President Nicolas Sarkozy, right, with French Prime Minister Francois Fillon, at left, addresses reporters during a press conference at the Elysee Palace in Paris, Tuesday, July 24, 2007. Sarkozy said Tuesday that neither the European Union nor France paid money to Libya for the release of five Bulgarian nurses...
French President Nicolas Sarkozy, right, with French Prime Minister Francois Fillon, at left, addresses reporters during a press conference at the Elysee Palace in Paris, Tuesday, July 24, 2007. Sarkozy...   (Associated Press)
French President Nicolas Sarkozy poses for an official portrait next to the French and European Community flags, in the Elysee Palace library, in Paris, Monday, May 21, 2007. This photo will be displayed in French city halls and schools and in French embassies. (AP Photo/Philippe Warrin)
French President Nicolas Sarkozy poses for an official portrait next to the French and European Community flags, in the Elysee Palace library, in Paris, Monday, May 21, 2007. This photo will be displayed...   (Associated Press)
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Homepage of the French civil service
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Nicolas Sarkozy • France • reform • Francois Fillon • civil service

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