French president heads to Brussels for EU summit

French President Francois Hollande is attending Thursday an important European Union Summit in Brussels, destined to tackle the growing problem of youth unemployment in member countries, Hollande's office announced. The two-day summit kicks off later today with meetings between the 27 EU leaders and representatives of employers' and workers' federations and unions, and consultations with European Parliament President Martin Schulz. Hollande heads to Brussels one day after the latest French jobless figures show a halt in the sharp rise in unemployment levels. In May, only 100 more people were added to the jobless rolls, but more than 3.26 million people are still seeking work on mainland France, or about 10.4 percent of the workforce. Hollande, working with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, is to stress the urgent need to find jobs for people under 25, where jobless levels are more than double the national average in many member States. The French leader has been garnering support for an important initiative to help youth unemployment, which has suffered under the relative austerity being put in place in response to budgetary problems and national deficit and debt challenges. The EU, inspired by Hollande and Merkel, is expected to approve a major financing initiative package - probably around Euros 6.0 billion (USD 8.0 billion) - that will be rapidly made available to help find jobs for those age under 25. But some of the 27 EU leaders are also calling for more labour market reform to facilitate easier hiring and firing practices and reduce burdens on employers. Unemployment is a politically sensitive area for Hollande, who has committed to changing the worsening jobs trend in France and inversing the unemployment curve by the end of the year. The Brussels meeting is likely to be tense for different reasons and principally due to a series of verbal spats between EU Commission President Manuel Barroso and members of the French government, notably Industrial Renewal Minister Arnaud Montebourg. Barroso is reported to have accused France of being "reactionary" because Paris is objecting to including culture in free-trade negotiations with the US. Barroso said he was misunderstood but his comments set off a chain reaction, followed by attacks from members of the French government against the Commission President.