The openings of small local shops attacked in court

The mayor of Béziers Robert Ménard (DVD) responds to journalists before the Montpellier administrative court on November 4, 2020. -

• The mayors of five municipalities in Languedoc and Roussillon have authorized by municipal decree the opening of small so-called "non-essential" local shops.

• These municipal decrees have been attacked by the various prefects who believe that these openings are outlawed.

• The presence of Robert Ménard, mayor of Béziers (DVD) and Louis Aliot (RN), his counterpart from Perpignan, gave a more political turn to these debates.

  The judges of the Montpellier administrative court are due to rule on Wednesday.

The Montpellier administrative court looked into the municipal decrees on Tuesday authorizing the opening of local non-food shops.

Three municipalities in the Pyrénées-Orientales (Claira, Perpignan and Pia), as well as the cities of Carcassonne and Béziers were concerned by the requests made by the State.

Usually, the procedure of this court is essentially written: the judges base themselves on the draft decisions of the rapporteur, who examines the applications after having read the briefs of each party.

But the presence on Tuesday of the prefect of Hérault Jacques Witkowski and the mayors of Béziers (Robert Ménard, DVD) and Perpignan (Louis Aliot, RN) gave a more political turn to the debates.

"This case should never have arrived in court" thundered as an introduction to the prefect who came to denounce "an illegal decree taken against a national health control strategy".

"Flirting with the law makes things happen"

“Yes, we are flirting with legality, but it helps to make things happen, says Robert Ménard.

This decree, relayed by many mayors in France, led to an important decision: the Prime Minister decided to close a number of shelves in supermarkets, putting an end to an unfair situation.

"

A form of equity that Louis Aliot considers “against the general interest.

Equity would like us to allow small businesses to open, respecting or even strengthening health measures, said the mayor of Perpignan.

It has not been proven that closing small businesses would allow the virus to spread more slowly among the population.

On the contrary, it is admitted by many that the concentration of population would conversely allow its propagation.

"

Other elected officials take similar decrees

While awaiting the court judgment on Wednesday, other elected officials took similar orders.

In Baillargues, one of the 31 towns in the metropolis of Montpellier, Jean-Luc Meissonnier denounces there "the unfair competition of large-scale distribution and online sales which mistreat our small traders",

To date, no official report has apparently been issued against “non-essential” traders who remained open.

In Béziers, Robert Ménard announced his intention to pay any fines.

“I guarantee you I will.

Directly or indirectly, he confirmed.

They are experiencing such difficulties that I am not going to make them pay fines because the préfet sends them his police.

While I could point her to ten places where she would be more useful.

"

Showdown between the representative of the State and Robert Ménard

The prefect intends to fight the initiative.

"The credits of the community can in no case be used to settle these verbalizations", he has already warned ... The standoff is probably not over.

Politics

Containment: The mayors' sling against the closure of businesses puts the government under pressure

Society

Confinement in Béziers: Robert Ménard promises to pay the PV of small open traders

• Languedoc-Roussillon

• Covid 19

• Coronavirus

• Montpellier

• Louis aliot

• Beziers

• Perpignan

• Robert Menard

• Trade

• Society

• Confinement