ATHENS (Reuters) - France must observe the European Union deadline of 2015 for bringing down its budget deficit below the ceiling of 3 percent of gross domestic product, the chairman of euro zone finance ministers Jeroen Dijsselbloem said on Tuesday.
French President Francois Hollande said on Monday that Sunday's elections, in which his Socialists lost control of more than 150 towns, showed the need for a "solidarity pact" offering workers tax cuts and assurances on welfare, youth training and education, and that it should be financed from smaller spending cuts.