Sarkozy urges cooperation on French budget

French President Nicolas Sarkozy has called on parliamentarians and senators to up the ante to rein in France's deficit and make a success of the emergency debt measures he helped pass to save the eurozone.

President Nicolas Sarkozy, following the emergency Brussels summit to save Greece, 21 July 2011 Reuters/Philippe Wojazer

"To succeed in this endeavour, to lead our partners with us ... France must set an example by putting in order its public accounts and economy," he wrote in a letter to all members of both houses of parliament on Tuesday.

Last week Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel were at the forefront of efforts to thrash out a bailout deal and reforms to the European financial system to rescue Greece from bankruptcy and stabilise the euro.

"In France in the coming months we need to unite on essential issues and get over partisan interests," Sarkozy said.

The president's call is likely to cause friction with the opposition Socialists who oppose his efforts to change France's constitution to make governments keep a more rigorously balanced public budget.