Unpopularity of French economic policy seen growing

Approval ratings for the French government's economic policies hit their lowest levels in two years in May, with two thirds of those surveyed describing the policies as bad, a survey by BVA pollsters said on Monday.

The poll for newspaper Les Echos and France Inter radio showed 67 percent of people had a negative opinion of current economic policies, up seven points on April.

This was the worst such reading since President Nicolas Sarkozy and Prime Minister Francois Fillon took power last year and the third worst in 10 years, BVA said.

BVA said its previous analysis that while the government's approval ratings had stopped falling following Sarkozy's bid to revive his reputation in a television appearance last month, the public wanted to see real results before passing judgment.

"This is what happened this month," BVA said, adding it was difficult to know if the latest fall in ratings was due to the policies themselves or the showy ways of the president.

In his primetime appearance on April 24, Sarkozy sought to revive a stumbling presidency plagued by economic difficulties and personal problems.

Sarkozy's approval ratings have plunged in recent months as voters have accused him of focusing too heavily on his private life and not enough on the country's economic woes.

Critics have also said he has concentrated too much power into his own hands since winning election last May, dominating the political stage and leaving his own ministers with little room for manoeuvre.

BVA said the popularity of economic policy was at its lowest point since 2006, when student protests forced then Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin to withdraw plans that would have made it easier to hire and fire young workers.

The government has enthused over the fact that the French economy grew a faster-than-expected 0.6 percent in the first quarter of this year, twice the pace managed in the fourth quarter of 2007.

But a surprise fall in consumer spending in April, published on Friday, has compounded expectations for a slowdown for the euro zone's second biggest economy from the second quarter, partly due to tighter credit conditions.