French Minister calls on Germany to increase its wages

Days before Germany goes to the polls, French economy minister has called for German wages to be raised in order to ensure fairer competition. To increase its wages,

Social Economy Minister Benoit Hamon accused Germany of seeking an unfair advantage over the rest of Europe by keeping pay artificially low, and called on the next government to "play fair".

German Chancellor Angela Merkel's main opponent has put a national minimum wage at the heart of his campaign.

Merkel has called on France to cut wages to become more competitive, but Hamon suggested he was tired of hearing calls for labour reform when "some countries in Europe are getting around employment directives and underpaying their workers".

The high cost of French labour means its products have become more expensive. Conversely, labour reform in Germany has meant their products have been getting cheaper.

To spur the growth it seeks, France needs exports and its biggest export market is Germany. Statistics show that in recent years France has imported far more goods from its neighbour than it has sent the other way.

It is this shift in competitiveness that has caused strain in Europe's key relationship.