Le Pen calls euro 'the currency of occupation'

Extreme-right presidential candidate Jean-Marie Le Pen today stepped up his criticism of the European Union and its symbols, calling the euro “the currency of occupation” in France.

The 78-year-old firebrand, campaigning in his fifth and likely last presidential election, complained that France “no longer is sovereign over our borders, no longer sovereign over our country”.

“The currency of the nation is the franc,” Le Pen said on RTL radio, referring to the currency France phased out along with 11 other EU countries on January 1, 2002. The euro, he added, "is the currency of occupation".

Le Pen stunned the nation in the last presidential election in 2002 by qualifying for the run-off against President Jacques Chirac – ousting then-Prime Minister Lionel Jospin, a Socialist. The first round this year takes place on April 22.

Most polls show Le Pen fourth this year, trailing far behind front-runner Nicolas Sarkozy, a former interior minister from the ruling conservative party; Segolene Royal, a Socialist hoping to become France’s first woman president; and third-placed Francois Bayrou, a centrist.

The top two contenders after the first round are to face off in the decisive run-off on May 6, which will set the tone for France after 12 years under President Jacques Chirac, who is not seeking a third term.