Rachida labelled the ‘Barbie minister’

French President Nicolas Sarkozy's favourite Cabinet colleague, the glamorous Justice Minister Rachida Dati, is in the potage again. She has upset senior French judges and politicians by posing for Paris Match magazine dressed in a pink panther-print dress by Dior, fishnet stockings and high heels. One outraged judge immediately damned her as the "Barbie doll minister" and French blogs have been quick to adapt the magazine cover accordingly (right).

Because Dati's Ministry is situated on the elegant Place Vendome, also home to the Ritz Hotel and jewellers such as Cartier and Boucheron, one (male) MP could not resist adding: "One has the impression that what interests her in the Place Vendome is not the Department of Justice, but the place itself with its beautiful shop windows and jewellers."

Dati's, whose photoshoot was given three spreads in the magazine, told Paris Match readers that she buys her T-shirts at Monoprix - a cheap and cheerful French chain - and that her friends have noticed she's lost weight since taking on her new job.

As well as being criticised for the "unprecedented" photoshoot, Dati is also taken to task for her recent travels abroad in the company of Sarkozy. Trips to Morocco, the United States and, most recently, China seemed to have little to do with her great responsibilities as Justice Minister and more to do with her desire to enjoy the trappings of power - and the attention of the President.