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FN parliamentary assistants: missions far removed from the European Union
FN parliamentary assistants: missions far removed from the European Union
(INVESTIGATION SUPPLEMENT / FRANCE 2)
Was this parliamentary assistant paid by the European Parliament working for an MEP, or rather for the party that was still called the National Front? While he appeared at the same time in the FN’s organizational chart under the direction of Florian Philippot, at the time number two of the FN, Loup Viallet is said to have sent only one email to his MEP… in six months of collaboration, reveals this extract from “Complément d’enquête”.
Parliamentary assistants paid with public money, but who in reality worked for the far-right party that was still called the National Front… This is a flammable case for the current RN, which it has been trying unsuccessfully to extinguish for years. The justice system suspects a vast system of fictitious employment between 2004 and 2016. Before the highly anticipated trial, which opens in two weeks, “Complément d’enquête” delves into this sprawling affair on September 19.
The magazine’s teams got their hands on emails and internal documents from the FN. For example, they reveal the presence of one of these assistants in the party’s organizational chart, under the direction of its number two Florian Philippot. Are these functions compatible with a full-time job as a parliamentary assistant… which the courts suspect is actually fictitious?
Investigators have discovered that during the first six months of his contract at the European Parliament, Loup Viallet allegedly sent only one email to his MEP, Dominique Bilde. As for the content of this single email, entitled “Effective Material”, Tristan Berteloot, a journalist at Releasefind it “quite surprising from a parliamentary assistant” : Loup Viallet asks his MEP to find him professional equipment to replace his “small student computer”. “Working in fact at the Carré, I cannot however have equipment financed by the FN, since my status is that of parliamentary assistant”, he justifies in the rest of the email.
A status of parliamentary assistant, but tasks to be carried out at the party headquarters (nicknamed “the Square”) located in Nanterre at the time, on the instructions of Florian Philippot? When the latter requested “a file on the projects of the Union of French Muslim Democrats”, it was Loup Viallet who took on the task, as revealed by an exchange of emails obtained by “Complément d’enquête”.
When he is not dealing directly with Florian Philippot, Loup Viallet is commissioned by his deputy chief of staff, Mathilde Androuët. Unlike Dominique Bilde, she exchanged 117 emails with him during the ten months he was a parliamentary assistant. Each time, it was to entrust him with tasks related to politics and the party.
Mathilde Androuët was not troubled by the justice system in the context of this case. Florian Philippot escaped indictment. Heard under the status of assisted witness, he was not sent back to court. Neither of them wished to speak to “Complément d’enquête”. For his part, Loup Viallet told the magazine that he was reserving his defense for the trial. He is under investigation for receiving stolen goods and embezzling public funds.
Excerpt from “RN: Where have Europe’s millions gone?”, a document to be seen in “Complément d’enquête” on September 19, 2024.
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