Is Nicolas Sarkozy’s brother the father of Rachida Dati’s child?

Rachida Dati, France's glamorous Justice Minister, gave birth to a baby daughter called Zohra on Friday, an event that has intensified speculation as to who is the father. The latest candidate is Francois Sarkozy, the younger brother of the President Nicolas Sarkozy (pictured with Dati), who was seen visiting the clinic where Rachida and her daughter are staying on Sunday evening.

According to the Times, Francois, a 47-year-old pharmaceutical industrialist went to the clinic with his elder brother Guillaume, and, more tantalisingly, is believed to have spent Christmas with 43-year-old Dati (pictured with Nicolas Sarkozy).

Francois is a new addition to an impressive range of suspects. As reported here, Jose Maria Aznar, the former Spanish Prime Minister, Bernard Laporte, the French Sports Minister, and Dominique Desseigne, the chairman of the Barriere casino and hotel group, have all been forced to publically deny they're the father. The French press at one time pointed the finger at the French president himself and there have also been claims that Dati became pregnant after receiving an anonymous sperm donation, although this seems unlikely because fertility treatment is reserved only for couples under French law.

However, none of this appears to have troubled Dati, who is the first French person of north African origin to hold such a senior government job. Her office claimed yesterday that she had returned to her ministerial papers within hours of having her baby, which was delivered by Caesarean section, and would be back in her office within the next few days. Her desire to get back in the driving seat is thought to be connected with the rumour that Sarkozy plans to remove her from the Justice Ministry, where her high-handed style has infuriated lawyers and judges. If his brother really is the daddy, this could prove an even more difficult decision.