The General Court of the European Union on Wednesday upheld a European Parliament decision requiring the heirs of the late French far-right politician Jean-Marie Le Pen to repay €303,200 (about $352,380) for misdeclared expenses incurred during his term as MEP. This was reported by "Reuters" agency, News.bg reports.
After Le Pen's death in January 2025, at the age of 96, his daughters Jean and Marie-Caroline, as well as his granddaughter Marion, took over the legal battle he had started a year earlier in January 2024.
Jean-Marie Le Pen, founder of the far-right National Front party (later renamed the National Rally), was a member of the European Parliament from 1984 to 2019. In the last year of his life, he appealed the institution's decision, claiming that it violated the principles of legal certainty, legitimate expectations and his right to a fair trial.
However, the court dismissed the appeal, arguing that the European Parliament had complied with all procedural requirements, Le Pen had been duly notified, had been given the opportunity to present his views and had not provided convincing evidence of the lawful use of the funds. The court also stressed that the right to a fair trial applies to judicial proceedings, but not to administrative proceedings such as the one at issue.
The amount to be reimbursed concerns official expenses of an MEP which, according to the European Parliament, were incorrectly declared and not accounted for in accordance with the rules.