French President Nicolas Sarkozy and his wife Carla Bruni-Sarkozy

Carla Bruni-Sarkozy has given birth to a baby girl, the first child that she and French President Nicolas Sarkozy have had together. The birth makes her the first serving Premier Dame of France to give birth.

The 43-year-old gave birth at the private Muette Maternity Clinic in Paris and was visited by her husband for around 30-minutes before he had to rush off to a meeting in Frankfurt with Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel. The 56-year-old French President is expected to return to his wife after the meeting.

It is the second child for Ms Bruni-Sarkozy who has a 10-year-old son to a former lover. This will be President Sarkozy's fourth child as he has two sons aged 25 and 26 from his first marriage and a daughter aged 14 from his second marriage.

France's Premier Dame will no doubt be glad to be finished with her pregnancy. "Quite frankly, I can't stand it anymore. I spend most of my time either sitting down or lying down. I can't drink or smoke anymore. I'm in a hurry to get it over with. It doesn't interest the French," said the Ms Bruni-Sarkozy regarding pregnancy.