An increase in the budget, additional staff in the field, the generalization of fixed fines … A few months before the presidential election, the President of the Republic, Emmanuel Macron, on Monday January 10, multiplied the announcements on the subject of security during a trip to Nice (Alpes-Maritimes).
Franceinfo recapitulates the main statements of the Head of State.
Fifteen billion euros more over five years
Emmanuel Macron announced that the security budget would be increased by 15 billion euros over five years, as part of a bill that will be presented to the Council of Ministers in March. This “Law of orientation and programming of the Ministry of the Interior” (Lopmi) – which could only be voted on after the presidential election – will therefore endorse a 25% increase in the current budget, the president said.
This budgetary effort, which would be historic, would come after that of the 2022 budget which was already a record with an additional 1.5 billion euros dedicated to security. Concretely, the budget of the ministry would be increased by one billion in the first year, by two in the second year and so on up to five billion more in the fifth year, so that the total would reach 15 billion at the end of the Lopmi .
Generalized flat-rate fines for sentences of less than one year in prison
The president announced the generalization of fixed tort fines (AFD) for crimes punishable by sentences of less than one year in prison. He explained that this generalization of AFD, used in particular to fight against the consumption of narcotics, was “an element of simplification” which will allow “magistrates to concentrate on more important cases”.
One thousand five hundred cyber patrollers on the web
Emmanuel Macron announced the creation of 1,500 additional cyber patrollers and a cyber training school to fight digital attacks, as part of a billion euro investment plan. “This is a specific effort that can be evaluated at at least 1,500 additional cyber patrollers – in particular reservists – for the next few years”, said the Elysee.
The training school will be created within the Ministry of the Interior to train police officers, gendarmes and agents of the intelligence services “on this constantly evolving theme”, according to the Elysee. In addition, the Head of State announced the establishment of a digital equivalent of “call 17” so that each citizen can report a cyberattack (virus, hacking, etc.) directly and be immediately activated. relationship with a specialized operator.
The fine for street harassment tripled
The head of state said he wanted to triple the fine for street harassment to 300 euros, an act that will be described as “offense”. He also explained that he wanted “doubling the dedicated police presence in public transport at the times when the attacks are most noted”.
The number of police officers on the ground doubled by 2030
Emmanuel Macron announced that he wanted “to double the police on the ground by 2030”, in particular by the elimination of ancillary tasks and reorganizations. This measure will complement the creation of 10,000 law enforcement positions since the start of the five-year term, the president said. In September, in Roubaix, during a trip on this subject, the Head of State had already mentioned this doubling of the workforce on the public highway.
He explained on Monday that to achieve this goal over the next five years, the orientation and programming law of the Ministry of the Interior (Lopmi) would put “an end to undue tasks”, such as guarding public buildings, transferring detainees, policing court hearings, etc. In total, this should make it possible to “3,500 police and gendarmes” to put them on the public highway.
In addition, Emmanuel Macron announced an acceleration in the release of police and gendarmes from administrative tasks. “There will be no more, he said, from 2023 only one of these personnel active in administrative control functions at our borders or in the management of administrative detention centers (CRA) “. “This will allow us to put no less than 3,000 agents back on the public road”, he estimated.
A “republican force of action for the districts”
Emmanuel Macron announced the creation of a “republican force of action for the districts”, that is “an action force which, in neighborhoods experiencing difficulties, will allow us to plan for several months dedicated security forces who will come to secure the neighborhood, help dismantle the main points of the deal”, he clarified.
Two hundred gendarmerie brigades created in rural areas
“We are going to create 200 gendarmerie brigades in rural areas which will be able to take the form of new types of establishments with experiments which will be launched in several departments”, announced the president, “to restore tranquility in the most rural districts”.
“The experiments carried out in several departments have proven the effectiveness of the system, which brings the police closer to the population in areas where the footprint of public services is small”, added the head of state.