He returned his senatorial sash, after thirteen years spent in the upper house of Parliament. The elected communist from the North Eric Bocquet resigned from his mandate in the Senate, which he had held since 2011 and two re-elections. It was his last day Friday November 1st. At almost 67 years old, he remains a municipal councilor of Marquillies, a city of which he was mayor for 22 years, and metropolitan councilor of the European Metropolis of Lille. He explains his choice and what he takes away from this position.
France Bleu Nord: Is this resignation a relief or is it complicated to leave?
It is a real political choice, thought out even before the last senatorial elections of 2023. I am neither sick, nor tired, nor disillusioned, nor disappointed. But I'm leaving because I decided to allow Alexandre Basquin [maire d’Avesnes-les-Aubert, ndlr] to settle in the mandate. Cambrésis has not had a senator since 2017. He knows the communities and he knows the Senate since he was my colleague for thirteen years. I think it will be operational very quickly. You have to know, at a given moment, how to prepare for what comes next and call on the new generation.
What do you remember from this mandate as senator that you held for more than ten years?
I loved this mandate. It’s an experience I wish for everyone. I entered the Senate with convictions, I left with certainties. I understand better the way the world works and in particular the influence of finance on the affairs of States and society as a whole. I found myself on the finance committee when I arrived in 2011, a committee that I did not choose. I learned every day. I feel like I went to university. When we vote on a budget, we prepare for the daily lives of people, communities, public services, all aspects of society.
The Senate is often said to be the chamber of old elected officials…
Yes, there are always these pot-bellied, drowsy, prostatic octogenarians in the heads of some people. Honestly, that's not what I experienced at all. I lived with people who worked a lot. The work of the Senate and the reports that are published are recognized for their quality by journalists, universities and mayors. There are fundamental debates, sometimes very strong, such as that on inclusion in the Constitution, for example. Not everything is written in advance, there are things that may have moved forward at certain times on particular subjects. This is the heart of democracy.
Will you remember a fight that you fought, a text or a moment that marked you?
There is the adoption of the reports of the commissions of inquiry unanimously by all members, despite the differences that may exist between them. It gives strength to this report and it becomes a political tool. [Avec son frère, l’ancien député Alain Bocquet, ndlr]we turned it into two books (Sans domicile Fisc and Billions on the run). And another nice moment was in December 2021 when Picard was finally recognized as a regional language. It’s a small victory, but symbolic and a recognition of our culture, our heritage. It's not cheesy.
Did you feel like you managed to change things a little?
On the subject of tax evasion and tax havens, there is a long, long way to go. Small measures have been taken, but what is, I believe, established is that the subject is in the public debate. It speaks to everyone. We are regularly upset about the deficit, the debt… And then over there, on the other side, there are tens of billions that escape the Republic. We might do well to take a little more interest in it.
Do you plan to continue your political action?
I remain a municipal councilor in Marquillies and a community councilor in the European Metropolis of Lille. If I am invited to share what I have learned and understood, like a few weeks ago, by the Rotary Club of La Bassée to talk about the public debt, then I intend to do so. I'm going to change pace. A little more reading but no parliamentary report. Listen to music. Return to selected moments, to a senator's pace.
You leave at a particular moment the political situation of the country, very divided, very uncertain also especially since the dissolution of the National Assembly. Does this concern you?
That concerns me a little. Concerning the budgetary debate, I have the feeling that it is in the Senate that this budget will be constructed but I fear that everything will be decided by 49-3. Political life is fascinating, if it takes care of people and not just those who practice it, with personal ambitions. I saw the recent polls on the growing distrust of our fellow citizens towards elected officials. It's worrying because we need elected officials. We are experiencing such a significant democratic crisis, abstention which remains high, far-right voting which worries me deeply, the state of the world. People are worried, and no longer believe in the future. And that's the worst thing. Resignation is the worst thing, it's the worst poison. I don't believe in fate. This is why I have been involved for 50 years now. I am convinced that the means exist to build another world. We are in a difficult moment. But there have been more difficult times in our history and all this reinforces my idea that collective commitment makes it possible to overcome difficulties.
