Sarkozy's first 100 days

After 100 days in office French President Nicholas Sarkozy is, according to opinion polls in France, more popular than ever, and his ratings make him France's most well-liked leader since Charles de Gaulle. His appeal is not only limited to centre-right voters, and according to the polling group Ipsos France, more than a third of left-wing voters consistently support him, irrespective of the issues concerned.

His popularity certainly does not surprise me, and Mr Sarkozy's new-style approach and policies seem to be exactly what France needs at this moment in time.

Domestically, Mr Sarkozy has included political opponents in his administration, maintained cordial relations with the unions, started to implement a number of electoral promises and adopted a hands-on approach in governing the country.

He has also convinced people that, although he is from the same political family as former President Jacques Chirac - who was in office for 12 years - he is a President who can bring about the change the country so badly needs. Perhaps most important of all, Mr Sarkozy has shown a remarkable ability to feel the pulse of the electorate and to identify with the mood of the nation.

Internationally, Mr Sarkozy has certainly improved relations with the United States, which had deteriorated somewhat under Mr Chirac, and has adopted a more constructive role within the European Union, emphasising the importance of Europe and America working together on a whole range of issues, including defence and security.

So far Mr Sarkozy has introduced a number of reforms, such as making overtime tax free from October, a lowering of the individual tax burden from 60 to 50 per cent, the abolition of inheritance tax, the easing of the wealth tax, and increased university autonomy.

Furthermore, public transport strikers must make their intentions known 48 hours before a strike, and a secret ballot must be held after eight days of a strike.

In the justice sector, minimum sentences have been imposed for re-offenders, and minors over 18 are to be treated as adults in certain cases. New sentences and initiatives are being considered for sexual offenders.

These reforms are important, even though according to some observers they do not go far enough and were introduced along with compromises. For example, Mr Sarkozy failed to get a minimum level of service during public transport strikes guaranteed by law, just as he failed to get through reforms to do with student selection and fees at the country's universities.

For Mr Sarkozy's critics these 'failures' do not bode well for the President's next batch of economic reforms, which are far more radical in nature.

However, politics is the art of compromise, and it is always impossible to achieve everything you want. Progress has certainly been made and the President has kept many of his promises. Also, it could very well be that Mr Sarkozy intentionally adopted a gentle approach vis-à-vis his first reforms to calm the nation and avoid social divisions before the more significant reforms this autumn.

This next batch of reforms could be far more controversial than the ones introduced so far, and Mr Sarkozy will need all his political skills in introducing them. The President has promised to introduce far-reaching reforms in the labour market (more flexible labour contracts), the civil service (replace only half of departing public servants), the pensions sector (review of state pension schemes), and also within the trade unions (union representation in talks on labour market, health and unemployment systems to be reviewed).

These reforms, which are greatly needed to get the economy moving again, will not be easy to introduce, and opinion polls, for example, are already showing public opposition to civil service reform. So Mr Sarkozy will have to be 100 per cent focused on getting them through.

The country's budget deficit - which critics say could increase due to the recently introduced tax cuts - could also cause problems for the French President, who has delayed announcing France's target for a balanced budget to the EU. Should the economic climate worsen, the reforms would prove harder to be accepted by the French public.

As regards foreign policy Mr Sarkozy's recent address to French Ambassadors was highly significant, in that he urged the EU to adopt a wider global role. The French President said France will push for a bolder EU security strategy during its EU presidency in the second half of next year.

"Europe must progressively affirm itself as a first-rank player for peace and security in the world, in co-operation with the United Nations, the Atlantic alliance and the African Union," he said.

Mr Sarkozy identified three main global challenges: to prevent an ideological confrontation between Islam and the West; to accommodate emerging powers such as China, India and Brazil; and to combat dangers such as global warming, pandemics and competition for energy supplies.

He also made it clear that "France is not strong without Europe, just as Europe is not strong without France." The President warned that a nuclear-armed Iran was "totally unacceptable", and in reference to Russia commented that: "When one is a great power, one should not be brutal."

Although Mr Sarkozy's speech might not have differed widely in content from previous French foreign policy announcements, his sense of purpose and his concrete proposals did, and this is certainly to be welcomed, as France has plenty to offer both Europe and the world.