“Anne Hidalgo, Our Drama of Paris”

Anne Hidalgo will leave the Parisian ship in 2026. Twelve years at the helm will, she says, have allowed her to “carry out profound changes”. She has modest success. Never has the capital been so riddled with debt: these have more than doubled, reaching a total of 9 billion euros today. Municipal agents — more than 50,000 — are almost as numerous as European Union officials in Brussels.

The city shines with its dirt and ugliness: streets and avenues are dotted with concrete blocks painted yellow; public benches have given way to wooden supermarket pallets; the tree stands are transformed into vegetable gardens-dumps. Residents are therefore fleeing in large numbers – more than 130,000 in ten years – and schools are emptying. The rats, on the other hand, stay on board. They are even multiplying: there are two per inhabitant.