ALAIN JOCARD / AFP
Laurent Wauquiez, LR deputy for Haute-Loire and president of the “Republican Right” group, photographed in the Assembly on July 10.
JUSTICE – A meal organized in a castle, for a bill of more than 100,000 euros. The affair of “summit dinners” continues to pursue Laurent Wauquiez, former president of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. In a decision rendered on December 30, the Council of State rejected the region’s appeal. The highest administrative court thus ordered the community to make public the documents related to the organization of this very luxurious event, which took place in 2022.
After leaving his post as president of the region to once again become a deputy for Haute-Loire this summer, the leader of the Republican Right did everything possible to avoid the publication of the details of this dinner, financed by public money. This appeal constituted the last possible recourse.
« Victoire »reacted this Friday, January 3, the Socialist, Ecologist and Democrat group of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Region, in a press release. “ This verdict puts an end to more than two years of unjustified refusal on the part of the former president of our Region”he added, believing that “This decision marks a significant victory for transparency and ethics.”
The dinner in question was organized in a château in Beaujolais and brought together around 90 guests. Some names have already leaked to the press. This is the case of several personalities such as Thierry Frémaux, Olivier Ginon or the starred chef Régis Marcon, as well as athletes Sébastien Chabal, Alexis Pinturault and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
Until now, the region had systematically refused to disclose the full list of guests, as requested by the regional opposition. “The administrative documents requested (are) likely to be the subject of political use likely to undermine the current legal procedure”estimated the Auvergne Rhône-Alpes region. An argument which ultimately did not convince the courts.
Source: www.huffingtonpost.fr
