Mr Fillon is expected to head a rather smaller cabinet of just 15 ministers, rather than the previous 30.

This is part of Mr Sarkozy's plans to cut costs and make the French government more efficient.

That reduced number has led to fierce competition for cabinet jobs, not least because Mr Sarkozy has pledged that around half will go to women.

Some jobs are also expected to go to other parties, in an attempt to reach out beyond the political divides.

If the rumours circulating in Paris are true, one of the top jobs - the foreign ministry - could go to the Socialist and humanitarian Bernard Kouchner, best known as one of the founders of Doctors Without Borders (MSF).

His pro-American line would fit in well with Mr Sarkozy's thinking, and he was one of the few French politicians to support the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003 because it would topple Saddam Hussein.

Of the female candidates, France could soon have its first ethnic minority figure as the head of the justice ministry if Mr Sarkozy's spokeswoman Rachida Dati gets the job.

The former Defence Minister Michele Alliot-Marie may go to the interior ministry, with the former Trade Minister Christine Lagarde tipped to go to agriculture - a key job, with world trade discussions going on and EU farming subsidies up for debate again soon.

The finance ministry is expected to be split into two, providing jobs for key allies of Mr Sarkozy, including Jean-Louis Borloo.

And Jacques Chirac's former French Prime Minister Alain Juppe may be invited back into government to head a ministry overseeing sustainable development, environment and transport.

Defence could go to centrist MP Herve Morin, who heads the UDF party in parliament.

(BBC)

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