France: Modem president François Bayrou acquitted in the MEP assistants affair. Justice has ruled in the case of the Modem parliamentary assistants which concerned suspicions of embezzlement of European public funds.
The treasurer of MoDem and former Minister of Justice, Michel Mercier, was sentenced to 18 months in prison, a fine of 20,000 euros and two years of suspended ineligibility. Five former MEPs were also found guilty. The UDF and the MoDem were respectively fined 150,000 and 350,000.