Europe

French PM defends Macron, saying ‘Benalla affair’ no state scandal

Édouard Philippe says assault by Élysée bodyguard is no cause for confidence vote

Alexandre Benalla, right, a security chief to French president Emmanuel Macron, confronting a student during a May Day demonstration in Paris. Photograph: Nicolas Lescaut via AP

Tue Jul 24 2018 - 17:37

France’s prime minister on Tuesday struck back at opposition criticism of President Emmanuel Macron’s response to a video showing his top bodyguard assaulting May Day protesters, saying it was an isolated incident and not a state scandal.

Mr Macron is under fire in the biggest crisis of his tenure after footage emerged of the head of his security detail, Alexandre Benalla, hitting a male protester and dragging away a woman while off duty and wearing a riot helmet and police tags.

Critics say Mr Macron’s office failed to properly punish Mr Benalla or refer him promptly to judicial authorities, and point to the president’s handling of the case as a sign he has lost touch with ordinary people since taking office 14 months ago.

In heated exchanges in parliament on Tuesday, prime minister Édouard Philippe sought to defend the government against calls by the opposition conservatives for a vote of no-confidence.

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“An isolated incident carried out by this person ... does not constitute a state scandal,” he said after fending off several lawmakers on the issue.

“I understand that there can be questions about the possible proportionality of the decisions taken, but the speed of the decision is not questionable,” he said, referring to the initial suspension imposed on Mr Benalla by the Élysée. “Nothing was hidden, nothing was left out,” he added.

Under investigation

Mr Macron came under further pressure on Monday when the interior minister and a police chief said the presidency told them in May it would deal with the bodyguard.

Mr Benalla had initially been suspended for 15 days and brought back into Mr Macron's entourage. The French leader fired him on Friday, after the story broke in Le Monde newspaper, and Mr Benalla was placed under investigation on Sunday.

Mr Benalla has been at Macron’s side during numerous public and private events, from the 2017 presidential campaign to the celebration of France’s World Cup victory in Paris.

He was also handed a raft of privileges and benefits that appear to go beyond his position.

Opposition lawmakers have launched a united offensive against Mr Macron, fuelled by their grilling of interior minister Gerard Collomb on Monday. The minister said he had taken no action after the presidency assured him that Mr Benalla would be punished.

Solid majority

Mr Macron’s chief of staff will be questioned later on Tuesday as part of the parliamentary investigation into the crisis.

A vote of no-confidence is unlikely to bring down Mr Macron’s government as it has a solid majority in parliament.

But according to an Ipsos poll on Tuesday, the first since the story broke, Mr Macron has seen his popularity fall to 32 per cent, down four points since June, his lowest level since September 2017.

A second poll by Elabe showed that 80 per cent of French people were shocked by the Benalla affair. – Reuters

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