Denmark hopes Hollande can help swing EU growth pact

(COPENHAGEN) - Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt said Tuesday she hoped the election of French President Francois Hollande would boost efforts to secure an EU growth pact by July.

Denmark currently holds the rotating six-month presidency of the European Union, which it will hand over to Cyprus on July 1.

"I hope that by the end of the Danish presidency we will be able to present a growth pact that will support the budget pact. The two are linked," the Social Democratic prime minister told reporters.

Her comments came as Hollande, a Socialist, was inaugurated as France's new president following his May 6 election victory over Nicolas Sarkozy.

"Like the Danish (EU) presidency, there is no doubt that the new French president has attached a lot of importance to having growth and employment in Europe," Thorning-Schmidt said.

"Balanced finances, as well as stimulating growth and creating jobs are two aspects of the same issue... Growth on the one hand and control of finances on the other are interdependent," she said.