Paris: A scandal over secretly taped conversations involving France's richest woman, Liliane Bettencourt, threatened on Sunday to engulf a high-profile minister in President Nicolas Sarkozy's cabinet.
Labour Minister Eric Woerth, who is leading the government's pension reform, was forced to hit back after his wife was linked to the furore over the tapes reportedly revealing that the 87-year-old billionaire plotted to evade taxes.
"Enough is enough. My wife is going to file a complaint," Woerth said in an interview with several French media. He vehemently denied any wrongdoing.
The conversations - transcripts of which were published by the Mediapart website last week - reveal that Bettencourt allegedly hid money in Swiss bank accounts while making big donations to friends in the governing UMP party.
The makeup heiress ranks 17th on the Forbes list of the world's billionaires, with a fortune estimated at $20 billion.
Labour Minister Eric Woerth, who is leading the government's pension reform, was forced to hit back after his wife was linked to the furore over the tapes reportedly revealing that the 87-year-old billionaire plotted to evade taxes.
"Enough is enough. My wife is going to file a complaint," Woerth said in an interview with several French media. He vehemently denied any wrongdoing.
The conversations - transcripts of which were published by the Mediapart website last week - reveal that Bettencourt allegedly hid money in Swiss bank accounts while making big donations to friends in the governing UMP party.
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The makeup heiress ranks 17th on the Forbes list of the world's billionaires, with a fortune estimated at $20 billion.
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