French Prime Minister Manuel
Valls launched a charm offensive on the corporate world on Wednesday,
promising to speed reforms aimed at freeing up the economy and to make
tens of billions of euros in tax cuts.
Read more: French PM, on charm offensive with business, says to speed up reforms - Yahoo News
Valls declared that he "loves business" in what was the most
pro-entrepreneur speech yet from the Socialist government of President
Francois Hollande - who in his election campaign described finance as
his enemy.
The head of France's employers' group said the comments could
mark a new era.
Responding
to renewed pressure from the European Commission for France to pursue
reforms, Valls said the government would try to lower the public deficit
but warned that too much budget rigor could thwart efforts to revive
economic growth.
Two days
after Hollande evicted maverick economy minister Arnaud Montebourg in a
government reshuffle aimed at re-affirming increasingly pro-business
policies, Valls tried to reassure corporate leaders who had been often
irritated by Montebourg's interventionism and mixed government messages.
"Entrepreneurs, France needs you ... I love business, I love business," Valls said to applause.
"The path back to growth is in supporting business," Valls said,
reaffirming a policy U-turn already announced by Hollande at the start
of the year with about 40 billion euros ($53 billion) of corporate tax
cuts and 50 billion euros of public spending cuts to 2017.
Read more: French PM, on charm offensive with business, says to speed up reforms - Yahoo News
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