The department of Haute-Marne is putting its prefecture on Leboncoin up for sale in a shock communication move to protest against budget cuts. An unprecedented initiative which raises concerns about the future of local authorities…
Incredible but true: the Haute-Marne department has put several of its public buildings up for sale, including its prefecture, on the famous Leboncoin site! This initiative, which is original to say the least, aims to alert people to the critical financial situation of local authorities in the face of budget cuts announced by the government.
A bold communication move
It was on October 18 that Internet users were surprised to discover the announcement from the Haute-Marne departmental council on Leboncoin. In addition to the prefecture located in Chaumont, the court, the gendarmerie and around ten other buildings belonging to the department but used by state services were put up for sale. A symbolic operation, of course, but which did not fail to provoke a reaction!
I like the facade, but there would be too many tiles to do!
An amused local resident
If some residents smile about it, others worry about the consequences for their territory. The manager of a café testifies:
There are people who are gullible, and who believe it. So, it’s panic. And then there are those who understood that it was a media stunt. At the same time, it worries people a lot. It’s the predicted death of small towns like us, I’m convinced.
Departments on the front line
In its draft budget, the government is asking for an effort of 5 billion euros from local authorities. Depending on the departments, they will have to bear almost half of this amount. An alarming prospect for many local elected officials.
We must all participate in the effort required to restore public finances, but all at our level and according to our means. It is certainly not the basic local authorities which are those which cost the most to the State budget.
Christine Guillemy, mayor (Renaissance) of Chaumont
The president of the Haute-Marne departmental council, Nicolas Lacroix, fears that he will no longer be able to complete his budget next year if these cuts are maintained:
We will be forced to abandon the territories, to no longer support the municipalities. It is also public procurement that will collapse. We only live on the grants that the State wishes to give us. So, today we are really dependent on the decisions of the State.
Leboncoin, new protest tool?
This is not the first time that the famous classified ads site has been used to sound the alarm. Last May, parents of students in Haute-Savoie put a class in their school up for sale for a symbolic euro in order to denounce its closure.
An unusual method but one that allows significant media coverage for demands that sometimes struggle to be heard. The “putting up for sale” of public buildings in Haut-Marne could in theory bring in 50 million euros, a substantial sum but far from enough to compensate for the announced losses.
It remains to be seen whether this communication move will make it possible to move the lines during the upcoming budgetary debates. One thing is certain, local elected officials do not intend to let themselves be dispossessed without reacting and are competing in their imagination to make their voices heard. The game promises to be tight!
