Nicolas Sarkozy faces tricky week tackling scandal

France's President Nicolas Sarkozy faces a delicate task today when he moves to calm a political funding scandal a day before unveiling a sensitive pensions bill, the centrepiece of his reforms.

The minister presenting the pensions Bill to the Cabinet tomorrow, Eric Woerth, is at the heart of the scandal which has shaken the government just as Sarkozy pushes through his key reform and eyes re-election in 2012. Mr Sarkozy has scheduled a live interview in an evening news programme on public television channel France 2, in part to respond to allegations that his presidential campaign received illegal donations from France's richest woman.

A source at the presidential palace said "all subjects will be covered," including the allegations that his 2007 campaign received illegal donations from Liliane Bettencourt, the 87-year-old heiress of L'Oreal cosmetics.

Bettencourt's former accountant Claire Thibout alleged that Woerth, who was Mr Sarkozy's campaign fund-raiser and is now his labour minister - received €150,000 (190,000 dollars) in cash from Bettencourt - far more than the legal limit of €7,500 a year.