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Any other business

Any other business: How François Hollande let France miss the global recovery train

Plus: Labour's Lloyds plot, and the case for fewer homeowners

25 January 2014

9:00 AM

25 January 2014

9:00 AM

I’ve always respected stationmasters, but that sentiment is not universally shared. A distinguished friend of mine across the Channel described François Hollande the other day as ‘un chef de gare, sans aucune dignité’ — and it’s not difficult to picture the little president, peaked cap awry, trousers unbuttoned, haplessly waving his whistle as the last train à grande vitesse departs for the Eurotunnel laden with talented compatriots who see no future in France.

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