"There is no question of a reshuffle," a source close to the presidency told Reuters. "For the president, things are clear: he has full and complete confidence in Dominque de Villepin and his government."
Le Monde newspaper on Saturday said Chirac had held talks with Sarkozy on Friday, possibly raising the prospect of him replacing Villepin. The source said the talks were merely the usual weekly meeting between the head of state and interior minister.
Villepin, his authority shattered by last month's defeat over a youth jobs measure, has been forced to issue almost daily denials that he misled parliament and the nation over a probe he ordered two years ago into suspected high-placed corruption.
He has categorically denied ordering an investigation into Sarkozy, his party rival to contest 2007 presidential elections, and other politicians alleged to have had secret bank accounts linked to kickback scandal.