An education program is, by definition, a societal program. Work should be done at school, rather than at home.

The British have been particularly shy about the issues of financial regulation, and attentive only to the interests of the City - hence their reluctance to see the introduction of a tax on financial transactions and tax harmonisation in Europe.

I won't wait until the end of my term to say I made mistakes at the beginning. That's too late. I will try to adopt the proper behaviour, if the French give me the chance, right from the start.

A large country with such outstanding economic performance as Germany cannot forget that it owes some of its success to demand from other European countries.

My adversary is the world of finance.

To be influential in tomorrow's world, to defend our values and our development model, France needs Europe and Europe needs France.

I perfectly understood President Obama's attitude throughout the French presidential campaign. He had no reason to distance himself from Nicolas Sarkozy. It's the basic solidarity that leaders who worked together owe to each other.