Trade and Industry minister criticises proposal by French president

Czech politicians on Friday strongly criticised a proposal by French President Nicolas Sarkozy to “re-localise” French carmakers' foreign units to France, an apparent aim to boost domestic employment in the current economic downturn. The French president made the comment on Thursday on French TV, referring directly to the Czech Republic, where PSA Peugeot Citroen has a joint venture with Toyota, building cars for the export market. On Friday, Czech Industry and Trade Minister Martin Říman said he did not believe the carmaker would relocate. He called Mr Sarkozy’s statement “dangerous” citing it as evidence that “protectionism [was] gaining strength in Europe”. Others, such as shadow trade minister Milan Urban, also criticised the French president.

Author: Jan Velinger