DOMINIQUE DE VILLEPIN French Prime Minister
'France General Policy Decleration'
	In his general policy declaration to the National Assembly, the Prime Minister stated that he wanted to "set markers, chart the course, and get France working again". He announced that "the direction of the laws voted by Parliament" during its legislature "will be maintained", in tribute to his predecessor. The Prime Minister also stated that the Government had "little budgetary flexibility" and that this would have to be "won back, step by step".
Dominique de VILLEPIN asserted that his Government intended to "improve the lot of every French man and woman," and refused to choose between a liberal and a social approach. "In a modern democracy, the debate is not between the liberal and the social, it is between standstill and action," stated the Prime Minister in his speech. "I am resolutely in favour of action". "Solidarity and initiative, protection and daring: that is the French genius," continued Dominique de VILLEPIN. He promised that his "public service" government will be "guided by one principle: the imperative of justice; by one criterion: the public interest; by one commitment: to improve the lot of every French man and woman". "I believe in a generous and determined France. A France where there is a place for everyone according to their merits. A France of opportunities," he stressed. "Winning the battle for jobs" The Prime Minister restated his priority: "to win the battle for jobs". "All the energies of my government will be committed to this battle," he said. The Government’s main objective is to "look for jobs in the places they exist". Dominique de VILLEPIN proposed three measures to boost recruitment in the service sector: A "new employment contract", i.e. a new type of open-ended contract to be introduced on 1 September. This new contract will "provide for a longer trial period of two years". More adapted to the constraints of very small companies, it will bring greater flexibility for the employer and more security for the employee. It will create "new guarantees for the employee" in the form of "supplementary unemployment benefit", personalised support and redeployment assistance if the contract is breached. Encouraging company managers to pass the threshold of ten employees. Dominique de VILLEPIN said that "the obligations, in particular financial and administrative, that apply once these thresholds are crossed appear prohibitive and discourage employers from hiring". The Prime Minister also wants to provide "support and assistance to young people who despair of finding long-term jobs". He has asked the French national employment agency (ANPE) to "arrange individual meetings with 57,000 young people who have been unemployed for over a year before the end of September to offer them a suitable solution". These solutions will be either "a job in a company" or "an apprenticeship contract" or even a "non-market contract". In addition to this, young people who take jobs in sectors experiencing recruitment difficulties will receive a tax credit of 1,000 euros. "Our aim must be based on one principle: equal opportunities" The Prime Minister indicated that he would make "defending workers’ purchasing power" one of his "priorities". "I would like negotiations between management and labour on wage schedules in industries to be concluded by the end of the year," he stated in his general policy speech to the National Assembly. In recognition of the "major housing difficulties" faced by French citizens, he announced that "rents will be indexed according to a more realistic and favourable index for the tenant". The Prime Minister also wanted to "free up ground for the construction of new public housing". "Transfers of land to social landlords will therefore be exempt from capital gains tax". Dominique de VILLEPIN asked the Education Minister Gilles de ROBIEN to "implement the education law in a spirit of dialogue with the education community". "I would like him to tackle the problem of priority education," he added. "How can we improve the support we provide to the pupils and establishments who need it most?" "A regional approach is no longer sufficient. We need to give more consideration to individual progress via regular meetings throughout education". "France will occupy its full place in the Union" Dominique de VILLEPIN stated that "France, a founding country, will occupy a full place in the Union. It will respect its commitments. It will continue to pull the European adventure upwards," he said, ten days after France’s resounding rejection of the European Constitution. The Prime Minister also told MPs that despite France’s rejection of the European Constitution, "the adventure is not over," and that "our European dream will emerge from these trials with renewed strength". "Europe has been built on the economy and pragmatism. People are now demanding more humanity and more protection: greater job security, increased attention to environmental issues, better defence of the values of respect and equal opportunities," he continued. "The meaning of Europe can be found in these values. It cannot be constructed through market forces alone," he specified.