Sarkozy’s trouble with women 4

When he came to power in May this year the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, promised parity within government. Real equality between the sexes at last. And he delivered…..apparently…..appointing seven women to the 15-strong cabinet.

But is and was it true parity or simply a gesture with little substance?

Do those women in fact actually hold positions of real power? Or are they simply there to make up the numbers and carry out the wishes of the president?

The evidence so far is mixed, although in his defence it should be said that Sarkozy has never flinched from interfering in each of his minister’s– be they men or women - areas of responsibilities

But his electoral promise for gender parity comes in for particular scrutiny, as the women seem to have suffered most from Sarkozy’s methods of government.

Take the case of the interior minister, Michèle Alliot-Marie.

She’s a woman with a long political career on both a local and national level, entering politics in 1983 as a local councillor and three years later winning a seat in parliament. By the end of the 90s MAM – as she is commonly known - had worked her way through the ranks of the centre-right Rassemblement pour la République party, the forerunner of the modern-day Union pour un Mouvement Populaire, to become the first woman to lead a party. In 2002 another first for MAM, when she was appointed defence minister – a post she held until May this year.

She considered standing as a candidate for the UMP presidential nomination, but eventually threw her backing behind Sarkozy in the hope of being suitably rewarded. In a sense she was, becoming (once again) the first woman to hold the office of interior minister. But her role and influence has been seriously diminished by Sarkozy’s decision to move immigration to another (newly-created) ministry, headed by one of his closest allies and personal friend for more than 30 years, Brice Hortefeux.

So MAM, who just six months ago was in charge of one of Europe’s largest defence budgets and took the occasional trip in a Mirage fighter ‘plane, now finds herself drawing up laws against dangerous dogs and accompanying the president whenever he pitches up in front of the cameras to comfort families whose loved ones have died in fires.

If the common perception is that Alliot-Marie has perhaps been sidelined, the same cannot be said of the culture minister Christine Albanel, whose role – as far Sarkozy is concerned – was never going to be anything other than minor.

Indeed Sarkozy did not have a great deal to say about culture in the run-up to the presidential elections. And he isn’t perceived as being particularly highbrow.

Another close personal friend of the president, Albanel may have the right intellectual credentials for the job, but that certainly won’t stop Sarkozy from muscling in whenever he sees fit. And that’s exactly what he did at the beginning of September, when he stepped into the role of culture minister at the inauguration ceremony of the revamped City of Architecture and Heritage museum in Paris,

And Albanel has a clear brief in a letter she received from the president himself to “democratise” culture by allowing free access to major museums encouraging more “creative and bold” cultural programmes on the small screen.

While Albanel’s job should be safe as long as she does what she’s told, Christine Boutin, the social cohesion minister, has a far trickier task. Although she has a track record in social affairs, it’s not one that endears her to everyone.

She’s an outspoken advocate of moral conservatism and founder of one of France’s largest pro-life organisations. Back in 1998 she opposed legislation to recognise same-sex domestic partnerships (PACS), famously arguing that its adoption would encourage homosexuality!

Should French television screens be filled once again with pictures of riots in the inner city suburbs, the homeless camping in tents on the streets of the capital, or asylum seekers being turfed out of sheltered accommodation, Sarkozy could well ditch Boutin and take control himself.

The last woman in the cabinet is the much-loved Roselyne Bachelot – a maverick of the centre-right. The health and sport minister was the only member of her party to vote in favour of the PACS back in the 1990s and is generally seen as the jolliest and most engaging member of the government. Paradoxically, that could be her very undoing.

She’s not averse to speaking her mind and handsomely putting her foot in it, just as she did several years ago when she let slip that former president Jacques Chirac was slightly deaf in one ear. Old habits clearly die hard for Bachelot, and recently she unofficially named a new recruit as a junior minister before Sarkozy or the proposed candidate had given their approval. The appointment was never made.

Bachelot fairly warbles her way through interviews on the airwaves and is spoofed on telly as having no clue as to what she is doing, which is true perhaps for her sporting ministerial hat. In fact she struck quite an amusing figure during France’s hosting of the rugby world cup, with a definite twinkle in her eye as the players grappled each other for the ball on the pitch.

Always smiling and loudly dressed, she comes as close as anyone to being a national institution but whether that, and her undoubted expertise in health issues will be enough to save her from a premature chop is unlikely.

How Bachelot and her fellow women in cabinet fare clearly depends not just on their own abilities but also on whether they have presidential approval. The prime minister, Francois Fillon, may be their boss, but to all intents and purposes, it’s Sarkozy who wields the potential axe.