French Prime Minister Acknowledges Errors

[Flagg]

French Prime Minister Acknowledges Errors

By JOHN LEICESTER, Associated Press Writer

PARIS - A combative French prime minister, in his first major policy address since an election hammering last week, acknowledged Monday his government had erred but promised to improve and move forward with unpopular economic reforms.




"There have been mistakes, there have been delays. They will be corrected," Jean-Pierre Raffarin said in an address to parliament.


The speech, to be followed by debate and a vote of confidence for Raffarin's reshuffled government, follows the beating taken by the governing right in March 28 regional elections. Voters used the polls to show their anger with economic reforms and unemployment running at nearly 10 percent.


Raffarin indicated that despite the protest vote, reforms must continue. A proposed law on one of the most contested changes — to the indebted health insurance system — will be debated by parliament as planned this summer, he said.


"Immobility is the adversary. It is that which hurts France," he said. The government heard voters' "worries and their impatience. But they did not chose abandonment, they did not choose retreat," he insisted.


While the elections were regional, the scale of the defeat was such that it led to a large government shake-up. President Jacques Chirac kept Raffarin as prime minister — despite opposition grumbling — but assured the nation in a television interview Thursday that he had heard the message of the polls.


Socialist leader Francois Hollande suggested Monday that the vote fatally weakened Raffarin.


http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040405/ap_on_re_eu/france_politics_3

[bemildred]

1. Translation:

Silly voters, who do they think runs this place anyway?
They are going to have to remove us permanently if they want change.