France went on EU spending spree

President Sarkozy had a crowded agenda as chairman of the EU

France's six-month presidency of the EU in 2008 was one of the most expensive in history, costing about one million euros (£907,000) daily, officials say.

The French Court of Accounts put the total cost of the July-December 2008 presidency at 171m euros.

Usually the rotating presidency of the EU costs 70-80m euros. Only Germany has previously spent as much on it as France, the AFP news agency reports.

The Union of the Mediterranean summit in Paris alone cost 16.6m euros.

"The scale of this summit, the irregular nature of its procedures and its massive impact on public finances together make this summit a kind of record," the court report said.

It noted that France spent more than 1m euros on the summit dinner for 43 heads of state and 653,703 euros on air conditioning, among other expenses. Big temporary tents and restaurants were installed for the occasion, on 13 July 2008.

The report said France organised 489 EU events during its presidency, including nine summits, 25 ministerial meetings and 328 seminars and symposiums.

President Nicolas Sarkozy's expenditure on the presidency overshadowed the previous French presidencies of the EU - in 2000 (at a cost of 56.9m euros) and 1995 (14.1m euros).