From MEP 2019, Manon Aubry, head of her group in the European Parliament, head of the list (La France insoumise) published a controversial scene on social networks on Friday.
“A quarter of European representatives are paid by lobbies, companies or governments to supplement their chosen compensation! “, she writes. “To whom do they complain? To their employers or to their voters?”, she asks. There is a scene with these few words: in the June 9 poll we see some other personalities or leaders of the lists, who “fill their pockets” refers to the text… while Manon Aubry is proudly branded “0 € “. The message is clear: don’t depend on “private interests” – that’s just one of the frontrunners. He wants to “ban these extra wages,” as he proposed in a column published this Monday In liberation.
Irritating reactions
His tweet has sparked furious reactions since it was posted on Friday. Main reason: It combines very different sources of income. The source – “Integritywatch.eu” – indicates A website Transparency International, an anti-corruption NGO. It monitors the work of lobbies registered in Brussels, but the income reported by MEPs, by expanding this data, it established much broader boundaries. Since Sunday, the NGO has reworked its data to provide accurate amounts, to the nearest euro – in MEPs’ announcements.
“Fake News”
Olivier Faure, national secretary of the PS, condemned Trump’s methods as “fake news”. According to him, “Text [de Manon Aubry] Who comes with [le visuel] Written in a suspenseful manner. He recalled that the “income” reported by Raphael Glucksman corresponded to the royalties he was receiving – confirmed by his publisher, Allari Editions. The head of the PS/Place Publique catalog has written seven books, five of which have been published with the same publisher since 2015.
Rafael Kluksman does not want to “waste time on fake news from LFI,” according to his entourage. franceinfo.
The same thing on the LR side: François-Xavier Bellamy assures that he has received royalties (36,328 euros) for nine works since 2014 and does not want to react. Valerie Heyer (Renaissance) was paid as a departmental consultant to Mayenne until 2021.
On the contrary, According to his statement, Manon Aubry did not carry out any payment activity parallel to her mandate. He notes that he received 2,547 euros monthly from NGO Oxfam and 1,284 euros from Sciences Po Paris, but before his election.
The other problem raised by Manon Aubry’s message is this: the reported amounts are sometimes out of date, unrelated to the candidates’ current situation. Valérie Hayer, for example, has received no local elected compensation – or any other “extra” income – for years.
“Not enough transparency”
Finally, the scene is criticized for implying that this income is illegal – if it is properly reported, which it is not.
“Yes, it is legal! They have every right to do that, but I think they shouldn’t,” assures Manon Aubry, our contact. She considers everything: “If the wise man points to the moon, the fool sees the finger!” I pointed out a real point, namely that a quarter of MEPs get extra pay. This is huge! “, she emphasizes. “Of course these wages are not all equal. “That’s not my problem,” she notes. “My plea is to stop receiving payments from lobbies, private companies or foreign governments. »
Referring to the Qatargate scandal, he believes he has “raised the material” and “observes that it moves taxes. Whether or not that fits the ban I’m proposing is for everyone to see what income is involved.” […] Transparency is good but not enough. I do not consider it normal for elected officials to be paid more than their adequate comfortable compensation except for the time involved,” he concludes.
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