France's ruling UMP will lose elections in April unless it ends a bitter feud damaging the centre-right party's presidential hopeful Nicolas Sarkozy, lawmakers say, according to Reuters. At a stormy meeting on Tuesday, UMP deputies savaged Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin and the speaker of parliament for refusing to back Sarkozy ahead of a congress on Sunday where he will officially be anointed as the party candidate. Two party stalwarts on Wednesday urged an end to weeks of in-fighting as Sarkozy allies fretted that President Jacques Chirac and Villepin were determined to wrest back control of the UMP -- even if it meant losing the presidency. "It's enough to drive you to despair," former conservative Prime Minister Edouard Balladur told RTL radio of the constant squabbling. "I want everyone to get a grip on themselves and stop this ridiculous spectacle. "For once, let's imitate the Socialists ... They have designated a candidate. They don't adore each other but they are playing by the rules," he said. Rivals of Socialist contender Segolene Royal who, polls suggest, will probably face Sarkozy in a May run-off ballot, have muzzled their attacks on her since losing the party primary in November. "All this tension is quite counter-productive for our political family," said Alain Juppe, a former prime minister and Chirac ally who has rallied to Sarkozy. He told Europe 1 radio the rival factions should sit down and work through their differences: "We really have to put an end to this spectacle, which is damaging us."
