Is there a new member of the PIIGS

'Jim Leaviss, head of retail fixed interest at M&G, the fund management arm of the Prudential, said France remains “the AAA economy closest to a downgrade” and that the US “will lose its AAA rating – but not in 2011″ as the two countries grapple with debt.'

If France and the US are close to a downgrade, can the UK really be that safe? And how far behind the PIIGS are they really?