Paris (AFP)

Valérie Rabault, president of the PS deputies, said that the numbers of police and gendarmerie had fallen since the start of the five-year term, contrary to what the President of the Republic promised on Wednesday during a press conference.

According to the member for Tarn-et-Garonne, who is based on a report from Bercy published on April 14, there are "1.109" gendarmes and police less since the end of 2017. "We are very far from the announcements of the president of the Republic ", according to whom there would be" 10,000 more "at the end of his five-year term.

In view of the FTE (Full-time employment) recruitment figures published by Bercy, this objective is "highly improbable".

Sunday, on the eve of a trip to Montpellier on security, the Head of State reaffirmed that "each police district will have more police officers at the end of the five-year term than at the beginning, without exception".

"I was surprised" by the announcements of Mr. Macron, made Monday in Le Figaro, continued Ms. Rabault, supporting tables. The president speaks of "6,214 members of the police" additional (4,508 police officers and 1,706 recruited gendarmes). "This claim is false," she argues. According to figures from Bercy presented by Ms. Rabault, between 2017 and 2020, there are 2,604 fewer FTEs in the police and 1,495 additional in the gendarmerie.

The president also affirms, still in Le Figaro, that "we will have in addition, from this year, 2,000 more police and gendarmes".

“This statement is imprecise”, there are only “1,462 additional FTEs planned for 2021 (1,145 FTE in the police and 317 FTE in the gendarmerie)”.

"Another uncertainty: will recruitments be in line with the forecast objective?"

"The President of the Republic has made announcements that do not correspond to reality," insisted Ms. Rabault.

Until the end of his five-year term, in 2022, he still has "the benefit of the doubt, but the march is very, very high" if he wants to meet his goals.

In comparison, Bercy figures show that under François Hollande's five-year term, with Bernard Cazeneuve in the Interior, there were 9,789 additional police and gendarmes, recalled the deputy.

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