He instituted austerity measures by reducing spending, raising taxes, (tax evasion is a national pastime), reduced the bloated public sector, etc.. (yragharris.com)
Like Thatcherism, Sarkozyism was deeply anxious about national decline, decline caused by restrictive labour practices, high taxes, uncompetitiveness, powerful trade unions and a bloated public sector. (blog.politics.ox.ac.uk)
The «North» — represented by Germany, Scandinavia, and some Eastern European economies like Poland and Estonia — are ruled by budget hawks committed to fiscal discipline; the «South» — including Greece, Portugal, Spain, Italy, and perhaps Bulgaria and Hungary — are home to bloated public sectors and seem unable to get their public finances under control. (blog.politics.ox.ac.uk)