Shortly after the publication of an article Friday evening by Mediapart on the subject, the Minister of Labor told AFP that the PNF had retained the offense of "favoritism" in an investigation which initially concerned two works of art received as a gift in 2017.

In a briefing note addressed to his lawyer, "the prosecution considers that there is only one grievance, in this case a formal offense of favoritism in a 2009 public contract", Olivier Dussopt told AFP, adding that "no corruption" is alleged against him.

According to Mediapart, the search carried out at the minister's premises by financial investigators from Oclciff (Central Office for the Fight against Financial and Tax Crimes) revealed "exchanges between Olivier Dussopt and (the Saur) seeming to leave little doubts about the existence of an arrangement around a public market dated 2009-2010", when he was deputy and mayor of Annonay (Ardèche).

When questioned, the PNF declined to comment.

The PNF had recently sent elements of its investigation to the minister's lawyers, a so-called "contradictory" phase, so that they could respond to the charges that the public prosecutor was considering withholding.

At the end of this phase, the PNF sent a "summary note" on January 23 to Mr. Dussopt's lawyers, according to him.

It only remains for the PNF to formalize the holding of a trial with the sending of summonses to appear.

According to Mediapart, the Saur could appear for concealment of favoritism.

This hearing could be held within a year.

In a press release, the Saur group said it had "read the article published by Mediapart" on Friday.

Saur "has been the recipient of a summary note" from the PNF "which envisages, with regard to Saur, an action on the sole basis of facts that occurred in 2009".

Contract between Saur and Annonay

"All the other facts investigated by the PNF have been dismissed" and Saur "considers that this residual action against him, nearly 15 years after the facts, is not justified, and will put forward his arguments before the court which will be seized of it", adds the group.

The preliminary investigation for illegal taking of interest had been opened against Olivier Dussopt initially about two lithographs by the painter Gérard Garouste which had been offered to him by a company in 2017, when he was deputy and mayor of Annonay.

The investigation was to verify possible facts of "corruption" and "illegal taking of interest".

In his statement to AFP on Friday evening, the Minister of Labor assures that the PNF "did its job and carried out an investigation and multiple investigations which brought out five possible grievances".

“My oral and written expressions have largely convinced the prosecution”, which “considers that four out of five of these grievances have no substance and have closed them without further action”, guaranteed the minister.

"No corruption is therefore reproached to me", he adds.

These two lithographs had been offered by a local manager of Saur, when a contract was about to be concluded between the town of Annonay and this company.

The contract, negotiated since 2016, was formally signed six months later, on June 1, 2017.

Olivier Dussopt then explained that he had not declared these lithographs to the ethics officer of the National Assembly - as is required for any gift of more than 150 euros - because he "did not know the value" of the two paintings.

He then returned them.

This case comes as the Minister of Labor is faced with a strong social protest on the decline in the legal age of departure, from 62 to 64 years.

The bill will be examined from Monday in the National Assembly, with Mr. Dussopt in the front line on behalf of the government.

MEPs have until February 17 to consider some 20,000 amendments.

© 2023 AFP