Nicolas Sarkozy marks the end of his first 100 days on Thursday as storm clouds gather over his promised reform programme: a global financial crisis threatens already disappointing economic growth at home; job creation has stalled and the country’s constitutional court has curtailed his election winning promise to give tax breaks to homeowners.

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Jogging, imprisoned nurses and reform - an eventful start to his presidency

Yet opinion polls show the energetic French president is more popular than ever – not just in his own centre-right UMP party but even among supporters of the opposition. According to Pierre Giacometti, head of the polling group Ipsos France, more than a third of leftwing voters consistently support Mr Sarkozy, no matter what the issue.