FRANCE:French Socialist presidential candidate Ségolène Royal suspended her spokesman for a month yesterday after he called her partner, party leader François Hollande, her biggest handicap.
The move capped a bad week for Ms Royal, who has been hit by a series of poor opinion polls, a controversy over her tax returns and growing discontent in the Socialist Party over her unorthodox campaign style.
"It is true that there is this period of tension. That is normal.
"Why? Because I am changing politics and I embody this change," a defiant Ms Royal told France 3 television. - (Reuters)