Sarkosy's cabinet : first North African Profile: Rachida Dati

[General Duke]

Profile: Rachida Dati

 

 

Ms Dati's career as a politician began with a letter to Mr Sarkozy

Lawyer Rachida Dati, named as French justice minister by President Sarkozy, is the first person of North African origin to hold a top government post in Paris.

 

She was born in 1965 to an Moroccan mason father and an Algerian mother, one of 12 children raised in humble circumstances.

 

At the age of 16, she started working as a carer in a private clinic.

 

The premature death of her mother forced her to look after her younger sisters and brothers.

 

"My mother was the light of my life. When I lost her, I thought I had been punished," she says.

 

My mother was the light of my life. When I lost her, I thought I had been punished

 

French Justice Minister Rachida Dati

 

 

Guide to new cabinet

 

Working by day, learning by night, she gained degrees in both economics and law, and went on to work for various public and private companies - including a spell working as an accountant for French oil giant Elf.

 

In 1997, Rachida Dati enrolled in the prestigious National College of Magistrates, where she studied for two years.

 

 

The ties with Nicolas Sarkozy that would eventually take her to the cabinet began in 2002.

 

She wrote to the then freshly-appointed interior minister, expressing her desire to advise him on immigration - Mr Sarkozy accepted.

 

She went on to become a constant figure at his side, taking on the tough job of spokeswoman during his presidential campaign.

 

As his adviser, she played an important role in dealing with the delicate issue of integration.

 

After the 2005 riots in the French suburbs, when Nicolas Sarkozy called the rioters - some of whom were of North African origin - "scum", Rachida Dati worked behind the scenes to limit the damage, as her boss stood accused of racism.

 

Now, Rachida Dati is the highest-ranking person of North African descent in France.

[General Duke]

French president's cabinet team

 

French President Nicolas Sarkozy has unveiled his new cabinet, slashing the number of posts to 15, appointing women to half of them and bringing in people from across the political divide.

 

Alain Juppe - Environment, Sustainable Development, Energy, Transport

 

A close ally of former President Jacques Chirac, the 61-year-old was prime minister from 1995 to 1997. Forced to quit as head of the UMP party in 2004 after being convicted in a party funding scandal, the appointment as number two in Mr Sarkozy's cabinet represents a significant political comeback.

 

Jean-Louis Borloo - Economy and Employment

 

Nicknamed the "social conscience" of the previous conservative administration, former lawyer Mr Borloo transformed the northern town of Valenciennes when he was its mayor, overseeing its revival from a post-industrial slump.

 

As labour minister he won praise for leading a drive to cut unemployment. But that will again be a priority for him, as the jobless rate of 8.3% is among the highest in Europe.

 

Xavier Bertrand - Social Affairs and Work

 

Mr Sarkozy's main spokesman during his campaign because of his closeness to the French people, Mr Bertrand is relatively new to the French political scene.

 

He was first elected to parliament in 2002 and was appointed junior minister for health insurance in 2004, introducing a difficult reform of France's lavish health insurance system.

 

 

Brice Hortefeux - Co-development, Immigration, Integration, National Identity

 

One of Mr Sarkozy's closest allies for more than 30 years. The son of a banker, Mr Hortefeux, who has been given a newly-created ministry, is the only member of his friend's innermost circle to make it to the cabinet.

 

Xavier Darcos - Education

 

An academic armed with a doctorate in Latin and a second in literature and humanities, Mr Darcos moved from being an education civil servant to chief of staff for centrist Francois Bayrou in the mid-1990s.

 

He held the role of schools minister in 2002 and was later shifted to overseas co-operation and development before being axed in a 2005 reshuffle.

 

Bernard Kouchner - Foreign Affairs

 

Mr Kouchner is an outspoken former socialist health minister and UN governor of Kosovo.

 

Widely admired in France, he founded the medical aid agency Doctors Without Borders (MSF) and is convinced that countries have a moral duty to intervene in humanitarian crises.

 

He supported the US-led war in Iraq and has vowed to put human rights at the top of France's foreign policy.

 

Herve Morin - Defence

 

A defector from Bayrou's team, he made the jump from civil servant to politician in 1989. In the outgoing national assembly, Mr Morin sat on the defence commission. He heads the France-Niger friendship committee.

 

Eric Woerth - Budget, Public Accounts

 

Mr Woerth has a professional background as a consultant and auditor. Analysts say the mayor of Chantilly will need these skills to manage the nation's public purse strings.

 

Rachida Dati - Justice

 

The daughter of illiterate Algerian and Moroccan parents, Ms Dati is one of 12 children. She studied law at university and then accounting, working for oil giant, Elf.

 

She trained as a magistrate from 1997-1999 and joined Mr Sarkozy's interior ministry in 2002, playing a key role in improving relations with immigrant communities in the suburbs.

 

Ms Dati acted as Mr Sarkozy's spokeswoman during his presidential campaign. She is the first person from an ethnic minority to hold a senior French cabinet post.

 

Alliot-Marie - Interior

 

The most experienced of Mr Sarkozy's female appointments, Ms Alliot-Marie has held the post of defence minister since 2002. She is seen as a safe pair of hands and discreetly efficient. The decision to remove immigration from the interior ministry portfolio means the job may be less high-profile.

 

Christine Lagarde - Agriculture

 

Ms Lagarde, named trade minister in June 2005, was involved in difficult world trade negotiations, seeking to maintain France's generous subsidies for farmers. She has, however, admitted that the EU's subsidy system is in need of reform.

 

Christine Albanel - Culture

 

Roselyne Bachelot - Health and Sport

 

Christine Boutin - Social Cohesion

 

Valerie Pecresse - Research, Higher Education