23 November 2006

EZA 769 Briefing Note:

France - Politics

Socialists take bold step with Royal but Thatcherite revolution remains a long way off

·The nomination of Ségolène Royal on 17 November by a breathtaking 60.62% did not go unnoticed.

·The FT for example had no less than six articles on “Ségo” in the 18 November edition, including the front page ·Also the tone of five out of the six FT articles was very positive: “why Royal is a sign of the modernization of western politics”. Sure enough, the vote was defining:

·Royal crushed two party heavyweights: former Prime Minister Laurent Fabius who now carries the colours of the party's left wing and led the opposition to the EU constitution last year; and former Finance Minister Dominique Strauss-Kahn, a modernising social democrat.

·She was also marked by her readiness to connect directly with the rank and file of Socialist sympathisers, via such innovative techniques as her blog. In this respect, it is significant that her best results were achieved across provincial France rather than in Paris and the surrounding area, where she generally fell below 50% of the vote.

·The contest finally showed a Socialist Party capable of opening up to new talent.

·Certainly, French Socialists took a bold step last week, but it is much too early to draw any conclusion about who will be the next French President and whether or not the country will finally move towards bold reforms.

·At this point, there are more reasons to believe that France wants new faces and a new political style rather than genuinely new policies.

© Graham Bishop