France's Sarkozy wants smaller government with more women

By Anna Willard

PARIS (Reuters) - French president-elect Nicolas Sarkozy is expected to form a streamlined government to push through reforms and wants at least half the cabinet to be women.

Sarkozy won a strong mandate for economic and political change by winning 53.06 percent of votes in Sunday's presidential run-off against 46.94 for Socialist Segolene Royal.

His government line-up is expected to reflect his desire to trim public sector fat and push through change.

"It's the idea of efficiency, the idea of reducing the state and of making savings," said political scientist Paul Bacot of Sciences Po in Lyon.

The government now has an unwieldy 30 ministers. Sarkozy says he will trim the number to 15, beef up some portfolios and replace others with new ones to help him get tough on illegal immigrants and create jobs.

He wants to create a ministry of immigration and national identity. The economic portfolio would be shared between a ministry of public accounts, to oversee spending, and an economic strategy ministry that would focus on jobs and the challenges posed by globalization.

Francois Fillon, 53, who ran Sarkozy's campaign, is seen as the most likely prime minister. A former social affairs and education minister, he pushed through changes to the pensions system and 35-hour work week.

Labour Minister Jean-Louis Borloo, 56, who heads the small Radical Party, may also have a chance of being prime minister. He has a reputation as a socially conscious politician and is liked by trade unions, which could be useful for Sarkozy when he tries to implement promises to change the labour structure.

Brice Hortefeux, 48, a close advisor to Sarkozy and a former local authorities minister, is tipped to be interior minister. He and Sarkozy have been friends for 30 years.

Xavier Bertrand, 42, a former health minister who has been Sarkozy's campaign spokesman, is mentioned as a possible economic strategy minister.

Ex-prime minister Alain Juppe, 61, could become foreign minister or head the National Assembly, parliament's lower house. Juppe was long a close ally of President Jacques Chirac, with whom Sarkozy has a strained relationship.

LIMITED POOL

Only six members of the government that is departing are female, and the pool of experienced women ministers is limited.

But Sarkozy will hope to avoid a repeat of 1995, when 12 women were promoted to ministerial posts after an election. They were nearly all fired within months for lacking experience.

Defence Minister Michele Alliot-Marie, 60, is the most experienced of the female politicians who support him. She has a reputation for being safe and quietly efficient, and could become foreign minister.