* FinMin sees tax cut decision between mid-May and end-June
* Says won't come before North Rhine-Westphalia election
* Says German competitiveness good for Europe
* Says problem in Europe is other countries, not Germany
(Adds quotes, background)
BERLIN, March 19 (Reuters) - German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said on Friday the government would announce a decision on tax cuts, but not before mid-May, passing up the chance to offer voters a sweetener ahead of a key regional election.
Schaeuble also again rejected a French call for Germany to expand domestic demand. French Economy Minister Christine Lagarde said earlier this week Germany's large trade surplus threatened the competitiveness of other euro zone economies.
Asked if Germany should do more to stimulate domestic demand and concentrate less on its export sector to address imbalances in the euro zone, Schaeuble said the onus lay with countries that have lost competitiveness.
"It is overall good for Europe that Germany has a competitive economy," he told Deutschlandfunk radio. "To improve Europe's overall competitiveness a few countries are needed that are more competitive than average.
"The problem in Europe is not in those countries that have a competitive economy -- and Germany belongs to that group -- but rather with those that have made some mistakes in recent years and now have to correct them," he added.
"I think we in Germany are on the right track."
Lagarde has urged Germany to adopt tax cuts to boost domestic consumption and reduce its reliance on exports [ID:nLDE62G0WK].
The German government is considering further tax relief measures but Schaeuble said it would not make a decision on these before a May 9 election in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW).
Asked what scope he had for tax cuts, Schaeuble replied: "We have said we will decide that between mid-May and end-June in conjunction with the formation of the 2011 budget and the medium-term finance planning, in light of the then current developments, and we are sticking to that."
The Sueddeutsche Zeitung had reported the government was planning a change in strategy and would present its proposals for tax reform before the NRW election. [ID:nLDE62H128]
The vote in NRW, Germany's most populous state, is crucial because it is the first electoral test for Merkel's centre-right coalition since it took office nearly five months ago.
Polls suggest Merkel's conservatives and her pro-business Free Democrat (FDP) coalition partner could lose power there.
Even if the conservatives manage to pair up with another party, such as the Greens, a loss for the centre-right would be a blow to Merkel and rob her ruling coalition of control of the Bundesrat, the upper house of parliament.
(Reporting by Brian Rohan and Sarah Marsh; editing by John Stonestreet)