Abuse brought to light. At the Lille Criminal Court, two former employees of a crèche belonging to the People & Baby group, in Villeneuve-d’Ascq, in the North, were to appear in court on Monday. After complaints from families were lodged in 2021, a nursing assistant and the director of the crèche are suspected of having brutalized nine children. Among other things, bruises and scratches present on the children’s bodies.
Committed to this subject, the deputy (LFI) William Martinet was present to support the families affected. Several publicized examples of child abuse in these crèches prompted this elected official to launch, on April 24, a commission of inquiry aimed at the economic model of private establishments which welcome very young children.
In the proposal file 20 minutes consulted, the deputy recalls the tragedy of the eleven-month-old baby found dead, poisoned with Destop, in one of the crèches of the People & Baby group, in June 2022, in Lyon. Added to this is the alarming report of the General Inspectorate of Social Affairs (Igas), unveiled on April 11, on the conditions of child abuse in nurseries.
The usefulness of a parliamentary proposal
But what should this parliamentary proposal be used for? The deputy points the finger at the fact that “companies conceal the financial logic” of crèches and that “the four main groups of private crèches are all backed by investment funds”. According to him, under the charters of values set out by the crèches, there is a requirement for high profitability which has repercussions on the operation of the companies in which the large groups are shareholders.
To have access to these hidden financings, only one solution is possible for William Martinet: to open a commission of inquiry. It would give him the right to consult and examine the investments of private groups.
The motion for a resolution functions like a bill. For it to be accepted, there are two possible paths. Or, during the session in the National Assembly dedicated to the social affairs committees, the proposal is voted on by a relative majority. Either the member must wait until October to submit the idea during the drawing rights. As a reminder, since 2009, the regulations of the National Assembly offer the opposition the right to draw one commission of inquiry per year.
A hearing postponed to 2024
While the two former employees of the People & Baby crèche, in Villeneuve-d’Ascq, were to be tried on Monday, at the Lille court, the hearing was postponed to January 11, 2024. The defense requested a postponement of the hearing for further investigation.
Leaving the court, the families present were revolted. The parents of little Sacha, one of the nine victims, tell him. “My son was locked alone in a room in the nursery for 30 minutes, his mother laments. We want the accused to pay, not to do it again. It has been going on for two years, two years that we take our son to see a shrink every week. And we still don’t have an answer. William Martinet had the opportunity to meet them. “What struck me was their great determination. Despite the difficulty, the parents remain determined, says the deputy. I need to rely on their determination to put forward my motion for a resolution to the other parliamentary groups”.
The LFI deputy considers that this trial illustrates “the excesses of the business of lucrative private nurseries, mistreating children and professionals, costly for public finances and allowing undue enrichment”. William Martinet says he is ready to participate in the next trials that would involve private crèches.