anger on the left after a response from the Minister of Fisheries to the Assembly on the subject of migrants dying in the Channel

The Minister responsible for the sea and fisheries, Fabrice Loher, responded, Tuesday, November 26, during a question session to the government in the National Assembly, to a question on the deaths of migrants in the Channel, which provoked the anger of left-wing deputies.

The MP (Hauts-de-Seine, French Communist Party) Elsa Faucillon asked a question, addressed to Michel Barnier, on the means put in place by the government to prevent the deaths of migrants in the Channel, numbering at least 71 since the start of the year. The Prime Minister being only required to answer questions from group presidents, he let a minister answer Ms.^me Falcon.

And rather than it being the Minister of the Interior, Bruno Retailleau, who responded, it was the Minister of Fisheries and the Sea who took the microphone, provoking strong reactions on the left. The boss of the communist deputies, André Chassaigne, particularly became extremely angry. “Shame on you”he shouted.

“We are not talking about fish but about human beings who are drowning and Fortress Europe which is killing. It's a shame! »denounced Mathilde Panot, the leader of the La France insoumise (LFI) deputies, on X. “We were waiting for a response from the competent minister, Mr. Retailleau, responsible for the interior. He is the Minister of Fisheries [et de la mer] who answered… The political shipwreck is total”for her part denounced Clémentine Autain, deputy for Seine-Saint-Denis and member of the environmental group.

Taking the floor to respond on another subject to the head of the environmentalist deputies, Cyrielle Chatelain, Michel Barnier returned to the incident a few minutes later. “We thought about the title of the question we received. Sometimes it's quite sketchy. We thought that it was a rescue at sea. This is why, ladies and gentlemen, it is the minister in charge of the sea, and therefore in charge, within the government, of rescue at sea. »who responded, he justified. “There’s no point getting angry, arguing about such serious issues”he added.