A losing battle

French ministers are desperate to show that the government still has a big role to play in fighting off unwanted corporate invaders. But their protestations aren’t very convincing. True, they shut out the Italians by merging Suez with state-controlled Gaz de France, but the political cost has been high. The plan to let companies implement poison pills looks ineffective. And Mittal Steel’s response to finance minister’s Thierry Breton’s desire to get involved in proposed takeover of the quasi-Fr...