Photo of M Sarkozy courtesy of the BBC
His response to a shocking news story - the alleged abduction and rape of a young boy by a serial sex offender who had just been freed from jail - was vintage Sarko.
Flanked by senior ministers on the steps of the Elysee Palace, the president announced a handful of simple, direct measures on an emotive topic - protecting children from paedophiles - that he knows will go down well with the public.
No more reduced sentences for sex offenders; secure hospitals for those still considered dangerous at the end of their sentences; tougher controls for those who are freed.
'Chemical castration'
The populist language was familiar.
He was not afraid, Mr Sarkozy said, to call hormonal treatment for paedophiles "chemical castration".
On the convicted paedophile who allegedly attacked the five-year-old boy, he said: "I don't understand how someone is sentenced to 27 years and only serves 18."
In a matter of minutes, President Sarkozy cut through a mountain of law and regulation in a highly complicated area to get to the heart of what concerns people: punishment for criminals, and protection for their potential victims. Sarkozy's anti-paedophile action-plan (more) By Alistair Sandford
Mark Alexander
