Sarkosy in hot water over protectionism

[baypond]

EU Commission says 'has a number of concerns over French car aid'

'Protectionist measures could turn recession into depression'

Sarkosy really is bonkers if he thinks protectionism will lift France out of recession and bring all offshore production plants home. Perhaps he will suggest leaving the EU next !

[NormanH]

He still thinks he is President of Europe, and hasn't forgiven the Czechs for taking over the role.

At the same time he is playing a completely non-European game in giving state aid to French car makers on condition they don't move the production of new models  abroad, (but too Europe)  as they have already done for more than 50% of their current production

[Chancer]

When I watched him interviewed he was expressing that yes he will help to bail out the French car industry amongst others like the banking sector, however  there has to be a contra ???? (I cannot recall his words) the gist of it was that he was not going to spend taxpayers money to help the French motor industry relocate to the Czech republic or anywhere else.

He gave a very coinvincing argument, the removal of tax proffesional will also reduce the incentive to move production to countries with a lower fiscal cost, he said that €1000 of a new car goes towards tax proffessional, dont ask me to justify his figures.

The cost to the taxpayer will be €8 milliard to be recovered by other (stealth) taxes.

I still cant believe that something as important as this has not been mentioned on this forum yet the comments of Carol Tharcher and Jeremy Clarkson get pages of posts.

It's a sttrange world!

[Maricopa]

[quote user="J.Rs gone native"]I still cant believe that something as important as this has not been mentioned on this forum yet the comments of Carol Tharcher and Jeremy Clarkson get pages of posts.[/quote]

Of all the many British people I know, my wife and I are the only ones who regularly watch (every lunchtime and night) the French news (we too watched the interview on TF1).  I would imagine our experience would be reflected on a forum such as this.  I personally am amazed that the CT thread has now run to 25 pages.[:-))]

[krusty]

Italy is backing their car industry as well. http://uk.news.yahoo.com/22/20090206/tpl-uk-italy-autos-decree-sb-20b2d2f.html

Shame the UK has not got one to back [;-)]

[Renaud]

JR and Maricopa, I am with you.

[Mr Coeur de Lion]

[quote user="Maricopa"]

[quote user="J.Rs gone native"]I still cant believe that something as important as this has not been mentioned on this forum yet the comments of Carol Tharcher and Jeremy Clarkson get pages of posts.[/quote]

Of all the many British people I know, my wife and I are the only ones who regularly watch (every lunchtime and night) the French news (we too watched the interview on TF1).  I would imagine our experience would be reflected on a forum such as this.  I personally am amazed that the CT thread has now run to 25 pages.[:-))]

[/quote]

I imagine it's because most people are sick of this recession, the so called leaders (or idiots as some may say) that have caused it, the media that has terrified the public with the constant barrage of bad news that is continually broadcast about it.

So, it is an escape for many to talk about insignificant celebrities and their insignificant comments.

R

[Clair]

[quote user="krusty"]Italy is backing their car industry as well. http://uk.news.yahoo.com/22/20090206/tpl-uk-italy-autos-decree-sb-20b2d2f.html

Shame the UK has not got one to back [;-)][/quote]

When Sarkozy made that very point last week, the UK press said ha was running down the Brown administration:

"In France, we chose investment because when we put France into debt

by taking money to invest, in return we have assets, infrastructure.

When you put your country into debt to pay for operating costs, you

have nothing in return for your debt and you ruin the country.

"If

the English did that it's because they don't have any industry left.

Gordon Brown cannot do what I am doing with carmakers [giving them up

to 6 billion euros]... in construction and other industries, because

they haven't got any left."

[NormanH]

[quote user="Maricopa"]

[quote user="J.Rs gone native"]I still cant believe that something as important as this has not been mentioned on this forum yet the comments of Carol Tharcher and Jeremy Clarkson get pages of posts.[/quote]

Of all the many British people I know, my wife and I are the only ones who regularly watch (every lunchtime and night) the French news (we too watched the interview on TF1).  I would imagine our experience would be reflected on a forum such as this.  I personally am amazed that the CT thread has now run to 25 pages.[:-))]

[/quote]

I have contributed to both threads...and watch the TV2 news

I also recommend

http://www.imooty.eu/fr/index.php

where you have links to all the main French press headlines (and the the English as well if you click on the UK on the map in the top right hand corner)

I would agree that there isn't a lot of interest on here in French politics.

I haven't seen any comments about the situation in Guadeloupe, for example, perhaps because most British people aren't really aware of the Outre Mer

[chessfou]

I think you'll find that the measures (although it is hard to find any precision of what exactly they are) are not really protectionist and don't involve any repatriation.

It seems that the vast bulk of the money is for the car firm's finance arms, which do the business when we buy a vehicle on the never-never and which have had the plug pulled on them by the banks (can't lend, won't lend). That should remove one of the significant downward pressures on vehicle sales.

What may be problematic are some of the conditions attached (although they have not, to my knowledge, been clearly stated; just various musings in the press based on NS's very general remarks).

I was struck during NS's address that the automotive industry accounts for 10% of the total French workforce (ca. 2.1M/21M* approx v. 5M fonctionnaires).

I ran a poll on the TF site re the NS address. Only 9 responses - 4 watched, 4 not interested and 1 had inadequate French. The numbers are too tiny to be statistically significant but nonetheless that's 44% who watched against 33% for the total viewing audience (15M - approx 1/3 of the French population - ca. 45M aged 18+ of total 61M).

That Imooty site looks very useful and I have added it to my favourites (main ones www.lemonde.fr & news.bbc.co.uk). For me news mainly consists of daily weekday lunchtime France 3 & TF1 (+BBC1 weekend lunchtimes) plus FranceInfo whenever I'm in the car.

*INSEE gives a 2005 figure of 28.8M but that's for 15-64 yrs, so a very large chunk would obviously be either in full-time education or retired.

[Chancer]

Hey Norman,

The day after the last general strike I was discussing with people what exactly is to be gained by taking action over multiple agendas etc, when I mentioned the suffering from prolonged strike in Guadeloupe not one person (French) had heard of it, I thought for a while that I must have imagined it or got t wrong country but no!

So its not just the Brits that can be ignorant of current affairs.

[baypond]

Google Alerts is a great tool. It uses word searches that you specify to collect news items which it then sends to your inbox 'as it happens' 'once a day' or 'once a week'   It is very useful particularly in an information intensive job like mine, or just for general interest.

[chessfou]

As an aside, here's a piece (from yesterday's Le Monde) for confirmed EC bashers:

Par ailleurs, la Commission a proposé mardi d'octroyer une aide de

1,694 million d'euros à un millier d'employés du secteur automobile

espagnol ayant perdu leur emploi en raison de la crise actuelle.

L'argent, prélevé sur le Fonds européen d'ajustement à la

mondialisation créé en 2006, sera versé à 1 082 travailleurs issus de

douze entreprises – trois constructeurs et neuf fabricants de pièces

détachées.

That's only €1566/head (1 694 000 / 1 082) although Anglophonic number usage makes it look like a mind-boggling €1,565,619/head (1,694,000,000 / 1,082). Will the UK press latch on?