Marine Le Pen's attempt to challenge her conviction for embezzlement of European funds with a demonstration in Paris resulted in a disappointing turnout of just 5,000 to 7,000 people. Yet her popularity remains remarkably stable: polls give her and her protégé Jordan Bardella between 31% and 36% support. Despite her legal troubles, Le Pen remains a political diva. Voters of Rassemblement National (RN) seem to have no issues with her criminal activities.
You'd think the RN would have learned their lesson by now, but that's underestimating Bardella. Since the last European elections, where the party received 31.7% of votes in France to become the largest party, he's been trying to get the European Parliament (EP) to pay for his part-time parliamentary assistant François Paradol, who is also a councillor for the Île-de-France region. In reality, Paradol serves as Bardella's chief of staff in Paris, and European funds aren't intended for that purpose. It's precisely this offence for which Le Pen and 23 accomplices were convicted last week. The EP already refused to pay the man in December, but Bardella persists. The Secretary-General of the EP sent Bardella an official warning at the end of March, writes Le Canard enchaîné this week. Incidentally, Paradol studied at the Plekhanov Russian University of Economics in Moscow, but that’s probably just a coincidence…
The verdict has been widely discussed globally. An underreported aspect, however, is that her punishment would immediately cause her to lose her seat on the departmental council of Pas-de-Calais. This has not yet happened, as it must still be formalised by the Prefect. For now, Le Pen may remain a member of the National Assembly. Of the 23 other convicted individuals in this case, twelve have appealed (including Marine Le Pen) — which will keep the case in the spotlight for some time. Additionally, a 76-year-old man was arrested this week for death threats against the judges in this case, highlighting the tense atmosphere surrounding the trial. He immediately received an eight-month suspended prison sentence.
Also noteworthy: last week, the Assembly voted to abolish alternative sentences such as electronic monitoring for short prison terms. The RN also voted for this abolition, which could lead to their own party members appearing behind bars instead of serving their sentences at home.
Bruno Retailleau, the Minister of the Interior who secretly dreams of becoming the President in 2027 while shaving each morning, presents the interim assessment of his first six months. He mentions immigration and crime in the same breath. The number of murders increased by 7% during his first half-year as minister, and armed robberies by 12%. At the same time, deportations increased by 15%, the number of residence permits issued decreased by 7%, and in 2023 the country received fewer immigrants than 25 of the 27 EU member states, while border controls have been strengthened. It has been regularly established that there is no causal link between immigration and crime. For a politician who likes to point fingers at 'the foreigner', it seems difficult to now convey the message that while the number of foreigners has decreased, crime has increased.
Laurent Wauquiez, leader of the marginalised Les Républicains in the National Assembly, has caused quite a stir in recent days with his proposal to deport migrants who must leave France to the overseas territory of Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon. These are the so-called OQTFs, a special breed of human invented in the dusty offices of acronym-obsessed Parisian civil servants. The four letters stand for Obligation de Quitter le Territoire Français (OQTF), Obligation to Leave French Territory.
Saint-Pierre and Miquelon is the name of eight French islets off the coast of Canada, together not much larger than the Cayman Islands. It's more than 4,000 kilometres from Paris, has slightly fewer than 6,000 inhabitants who don't belong to the EU, but do use the euro as their official currency. This "small paradise rich in flora and fauna" would, if Wauquiez had his way, become an open-air prison for 'illegals'.
His statements led to sharp reactions, even within his own party. Former Prime Minister Manuel Valls, now responsible for overseas territories, called the proposal "a colonial method". Even Marine Le Pen spoke out against it, emphasising that migrants with an OQTF must return to their country of origin, not to French territory.
Residents and politicians of Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon responded indignantly. They called the proposal "shameless". Nevertheless, Wauquiez refuses to adjust his position, which seems to deepen the polarisation within right-wing France even further.
✚✚✚ 🇵🇸 After a visit to Egypt, Emmanuel Macron announced that France will recognise Palestine as an independent state sometime in the coming months. ✚✚✚ A French regiment, the 28th Geographic Group, has begun mapping the eastern flank of Europe more accurately. They're using a bathydrone for this (learned another new word).✚✚✚🇺🇸📈 Macron's call to temporarily stop investing in the US fell on deaf ears: CMA CGM, LVMH (even though Americans can't make bags) and Sanofi are continuing their billion-dollar investments on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean. ✚✚✚ 🍽️ For gourmets: this is the list with the newest ✸✸✸ Michelin stars in France. Bon'ap! ✚✚✚ Corruption just became cheaper: French senators are no longer allowed to accept gifts worth more than €150 (comparable to the £140 the Members of the House of Lords are allowed to accept). ✚✚✚ On April 15, François Bayrou will announce the main outlines of the 2026 budget. It's unlikely that France will respect European rules this time. ✚✚✚
🎼 The paragraph headings are titles of songs that are in the playlist of this newsletter on Spotify. Totally random French music, but a treat for true francaudiophiles!
🇳🇱 Er is ook een Nederlandse versie van deze nieuwsbrief, klik hier!
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