Expensive dinner of Laurent Wauquiez: the headquarters of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region raided

Europe 1 with AFP 5:50 p.m., February 21, 2023

A search was carried out on Tuesday at the headquarters of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Lyon as part of an investigation by the National Financial Prosecutor's Office (PNF) into an expensive dinner organized in the summer of 2022 by Laurent Wauquiez, a-t- we learned from consistent sources.

According to the office of President LR of the region, the search took place in the premises of the community in the absence of Laurent Wauquiez.

For its part, the PNF confirmed that the searches were being carried out as part of a preliminary investigation opened in December "for favouritism, concealment of favoritism and embezzlement of public funds" after revelations from Mediapart on this dinner and a report from the group EELV to the region in October.

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More than 1,100 euros per guest

The "summit dinner" organized for 90 personalities at the end of June 2022 at the invitation of Laurent Wauquiez in a castle, at a cost of just over 100,000 euros - or more than 1,100 euros per guest, meal and rental included- , had aroused a shower of criticism in October after revelations from Mediapart.

According to the online media, a consultant had notably participated in the organization of the dinner for an invoice of 48,000 euros including tax.

The presidency of the region had indicated to Mediapart to have taken the addition "100% at its expense" but did not specify on which budget this expense had been charged.

A few days later, the EELV group, the main opposition formation in the region, alerted the Regional Chamber of Accounts and made a report to the PNF so that "any suspicion of embezzlement of public funds and illegal taking of interest".

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"Creating great synergies between players"

In January, the socialist group in the region had urged the presidency to lift the veil on this dinner as well as on previous editions, after obtaining a favorable opinion from the Commission for Access to Administrative Documents (Cada).

"The taxpayer (...) has the right to know how the region's money is used. Under no circumstances should it serve the personal interests of Laurent Wauquiez who has clearly displayed his ambitions for the presidential election of 2027", then told AFP the socialist group.

Solicited on Tuesday by AFP, the presidency of the region simply affirmed to remain "very calm" and to be "at the disposal of justice to communicate in the greatest transparency all the documents which will be requested of it".

Previously, Laurent Wauquiez's office had explained that these meals, called "summit dinners", aimed to bring "in relation personalities from all walks of life: cultural, economic, sporting, associative, social and solidarity economy..." for "to create in our Region great synergies between the actors" for its development.

These dinners, which bring together personalities from the region and whose first edition was held in March at the Bocuse Institute near Lyon, are intended to be held two or three times a year.