FRANCE:France urgently needs to "rewrite [ its] political, social and cultural contract", prime minister François Fillon has said in his general policy address to the National Assembly.
Recent elections gave President Nicolas Sarkozy "a clear mandate to bring our country into the 21st century", Mr Fillon said. "With Nicolas Sarkozy, the French have taken their destiny in hand . . . They have laid the foundations of a new France."
Mr Fillon deplored the fact that the "old and great power" that was France has, for the past 30 years, "hesitated to rethink its structures and habits". Left and right alike "adjusted the French model instead of rethinking it, top to bottom". As a result, France has fallen to 16th in terms of per capita income within the OECD group of industrialised nations, he said.
Successive French governments did not "dare to break this vicious circle of working less and less and indebting ourselves more and more", Mr Fillon continued. "The gap between our productive capacity and our desire to redistribute wealth grew ever wider."
Mr Fillon said France had failed to address the "historic break" represented by globalisation. "The world is waking up and taking its revenge on history." While France "struggles to preserve our inheritance" others "are fighting to build theirs".
This new situation "demands a long delayed burst of energy from France". To remedy France's ailments, Mr Fillon returned to Mr Sarkozy's favourite themes, chief among them the need for unity: "There is not a people of the right against a people of the left. There is only one people: the French people who are capable of joining forces when it is clear what is at stake."
The prime minister promised to enhance the powers of parliament. For the first time since the Fifth Republic was founded in 1958, the presidency of the finance commission will be given to a member of the opposition.
Parliament will have more say over public expenditure and government nominations. The possibility of a degree of proportional representation is under study. Electoral constituencies will be revised and the constitution will be modified to enable the president to address the National Assembly.
Mr Fillon gave high priority to research, universities and the environment. In the run-up to a summit on global warming in Bali next December, France will try to convince the US and emerging powers of the need for stronger measures.
France will also require a eurovignette (eurosticker) for lorries crossing France and will establish a carbon tax on products sold in France.
Though Mr Fillon spoke of the "unity of the couple formed by the head of state and the prime minister", he has been constantly overshadowed by Mr Sarkozy, who appointed him after the presidential election in May.
François Hollande, the leader of the left-wing opposition, ridiculed Mr Fillon after yesterday's speech.
"Omnipresent, omnipotent, omniscient, the head of state decides everything, talks about everything, intervenes on everything, is everywhere, and when he is not - which can happen - Mr Prime Minister, it is not you who intervenes, it is the secretary general of the Élysée," Mr Hollande said. "Without being offensive, the question must be asked: what exactly is your job? What role and what responsibility have you been given?"
Mr Sarkozy helped to provoke such comments by delivering two major speeches before Mr Fillon's key address marking the start of the new government. Mr Sarkozy defined his own role in Strasbourg on Monday night, saying:
"President of the republic, that's a job where you have to physically grapple with reality and put all your energy into action, into shaking up habits, to make change possible. Otherwise, who will do it? No one."