Was resorting so heavily to consulting firms during Emmanuel Macron’s first five-year term illegal? The CGT thinks so. Three of the confederation’s unions filed a complaint against X, Tuesday, October 25, with the National Financial Prosecutor’s Office (PNF), generating a new legal follow-up to this case launched by the Senate report of March 2022. The senators denounced “a sprawling phenomenon” and a doubling of expenses related to consulting missions. An investigation has already been opened on certain tax aspects and a complaint filed by the Senate for perjury.
The CGT does not refute “the political process” What does this complaint represent, filed by the UFSE-CGT (State civil service), the Federation of public services (territorial) and the CGT Federation of health and social action (hospital). But what is, according to her,“a commodification of the public service” has occurred “in defiance of public service missions and has degraded the working conditions of agents relegated to the role of performers”. According to the Senate, spending on the council doubled during the President of the Republic’s first term, bringing the bill to one billion euros in 2021.
However, underlines the CGT, this sum represents the hiring of 20,000 civil servants. “A crazy doughpointed Me William Bourdon, lawyer for the CGT, alluding to the expression used by Emmanuel Macron himself in connection with the social expenditure of the State, on which it will be necessary to explain and which it will perhaps be necessary one day to return… ”
The two union lawyers, Mr.es William Bourdon and Vincent Brengarth, explained during a press conference, Wednesday, October 26, what, in this common and old practice, could fall under a criminal qualification. They identified seven offences, including negligent embezzlement of public funds, Me Brengarth relevant “the existence of useless or redundant services” or giving rise to no follow-up. It is on this basis that Christine Lagarde, now President of the European Central Bank, was convicted in the Tapie case in 2016, recalled Mr.e Bourdon. “The offense is perfectly suitedhe specified. It’s even the bare minimum…”
“Deep in between”
The complaint, some fifty pages thick, also mentions influence peddling, due to “collusion and permeability between public and private actors”Me Brengarth wondering on this occasion about “the intervention of free consultants in Emmanuel Macron’s campaign”. Illegal taking of interest is also envisaged because ” relationships “ maintained between Emmanuel Macron and associate collaborators of the firm McKinsey. As well as potential favouritism, due to “total lack of transparency” with which certain orders were placed.
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