French President Nicolas Sarkozy vowed publicly on Thursday to bow out of politics if he loses next month’s election.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy vowed publicly on Thursday to bow out of politics if he loses next month's election.

"I tell you, yes," he replied when asked on a television program if he would withdraw from public life if, as opinion polls predict, he loses to Socialist Francois Hollande in the two-round vote in April and May.

But Sarkozy made clear he had not already thrown in the towel, announcing a raft of new measures after a week that saw his re-election campaign take a sharp turn to the right on integration and immigration issues.

He told BFMTV he was working on a new plan to help France's underprivileged and unruly suburbs, a fund to help single mothers, and extra measures to stop people cheating on social security benefits.

Sarkozy has failed to narrow the gap with Hollande -- who has enjoyed a clear opinion poll lead for five months -- and this week pulled out all the stops to revamp what many critics say has been a lacklustre campaign.