Le Pen and her co-defendants are accused of paying staff who worked directly for the party in France and rarely set foot in Brussels between 2004 and 2016, therefore violating EU rules.
French far-right leader Marine Le Pen defended herself in Paris criminal court on Wednesday, denying any wrongdoing as she and National Rally (RN) members stand trial over the suspected embezzlement of European Parliament funds.
This Wednesday marked the third and final day that Le Pen, the figurehead of France’s far-right RN, took the stand in the highly anticipated trial.
Le Pen and more than 20 other senior party officials are facing trial for allegedly misappropriating millions of euros intended to pay EU parliamentary assistants.
The prosecution argues Le Pen and her co-defendants used EU funds to pay staff who worked directly for the party in France and rarely visited Brussels between 2004 and 2016, therefore violating EU rules.
Throughout the three days on the stand, Le Pen was highly combative, even accusing the judge of bias.
An MEP for 12 years, she maintained her innocence, claiming that it’s not up to the EU Parliament to decide how assistants should be employed.
Giving numerous examples, Le Pen detailed at length her vision of the role of MEPs, saying it extended well beyond working at elaborating and voting on EU regulations. She listed promoting their views at the national level, meeting with voters, defining a strategy with other party officials, speaking to the media and attending major events.
“The aide works their MEP and, therefore, can work for their MEP for the benefit of the party,” she insisted.
If found guilty, Le Pen and her co-defendants could face up to 10 years in prison and fines of up to €1 million each.
Crucially, it could result in her ineligibility to run for office, jeopardising Le Pen’s plans for the 2027 election — her fourth and possibly strongest bid yet.
Similar charges have been made against two other National Rally figures, including the party’s historic leader, Jean-Marie Le Pen, although both have been spared prosecution due to health issues.
The current trial is scheduled to last until the end of November.
