- Title: Far-right's Le Pen steps foot in French parliament for first time as MP
- Date: 21st June 2017
- Summary: PARIS, FRANCE (JUNE 21, 2017) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF EXTERIORS OF NATIONAL ASSEMBLY FRENCH FAR-RIGHT NATIONAL FRONT LEADER AND NEWLY-APPOINTED MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT, MARINE LE PEN, WALKING TO NATIONAL ASSEMBLY SURROUNDED BY JOURNALISTS CROWD OF JOURNALISTS (SOUNDBITE) (French) FRENCH FAR-RIGHT NATIONAL FRONT LEADER AND NEWLY-APPOINTED MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT, MARINE LE PEN, SAYING: "He (French President Emmanuel Macron) used Mr. Bayrou (former justice minister) when he needed him as a dynamic in his presidential election, but once he managed to gain the majority without the MoDem during the legislative elections, he decided to get rid of the MoDem." VARIOUS OF LE PEN WALKING WITH JOURNALISTS VARIOUS OF LE PEN IN PARLIAMENT COURTYARD WITH NEWLY-APPOINTED MP GILBERT COLLARD, NEWLY-APPOINTED MP AND LE PEN'S PARTNER LOUIS ALIOT AND NEWLY-APPOINTED MP EMMANUELLE MENARD, SURROUNDED BY JOURNALISTS JOURNALISTS FAMILY PICTURE AT STEPS OF PARLIAMENT WITH LE PEN, COLLARD AND ALIOT LE PEN LE PEN WALKING INTO PARLIAMENT LE PEN WALKING PARLIAMENT HALLWAY SIGN FOR NATIONAL ASSEMBLY GARDEN CALLED THE "QUATRE-COLONNES" LE PEN WALKING IN PARLIAMENT HALLWAY JOURNALISTS (SOUNDBITE) (French) NEWLY-APPOINTED FAR-RIGHT NATIONAL FRONT MP, GILBERT COLLARD, SAYING: "We have the impression that the government is completely breaking apart and I think that unfortunately we are entering in the reality of what this government composition is, meaning an explosive chemical synthesis. This is what you get when you try to mold something that is empty." CAMERA PEOPLE WALKING IN HALLWAY (SOUNDBITE) (French) NEWLY-APPOINTED FAR-RIGHT NATIONAL FRONT MP AND LE PEN'S PARTNER, LOUIS ALIOT, SAYING: "This is scandalous because we already knew it. We knew that the MoDem had these affairs, it was Mrs. Lepage I think who revealed this three years ago. So once again we took the French people for imbeciles because of course when you are under media fire you have to explain yourself, but when you've accepted a minister's position you also have to take that into consideration." JOURNALISTS VARIOUS OF PARLIAMENT COURTYARD EXTERIOR OF FRENCH PARLIAMENT
- Embargoed: 5th July 2017 13:45
- Keywords: French National Front parliament MP political party member of parliament Louis Ailot FN Paris Marine Le Pen National Assembly Gilbert Collard France
- Location: PARIS, FRANCE
- City: PARIS, FRANCE
- Country: France
- Topics: Government/Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA0016M81WSN
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Far-right National Front leader Marine Le Pen for the first time on Wednesday (June 21) entered France's National Assembly as a member of parliament, alongside husband Louis Aliot and close ally Gilbert Collard, other newly-elected MPs from her party.
In Sunday's (June 18) legislative poll, Le Pen's party scooped up eight seats in the 577-seat chamber, a four-fold increase on the previous parliament but much less than it hoped for and not enough to form a parliamentary group.
Le Pen was elected to parliament together with seven other National Front candidates, a result that beat worse-case scenarios for the party but will not be enough to paper over deep divisions.
The outcome falls well short of the National Front's (FN) target of a "massive" presence in parliament and also misses its objective of having enough troops to form a parliamentary group, meaning its voice in the lower house will be limited.
Le Pen, Aliot and Collard spoke to reporters about the departure of MoDem leader Francois Bayrou who quit as justice minister, as the centre-right party is embroiled in a judicial probe into claims it misused EU parliamentary funds. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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