7:15 p.m., this October 2, Emmanuel Macron spoke at the time of the editions “ Here 19/20 » on France 3. The head of state spoke for just over ten minutes from the town hall square in Clairac, in Lot-et-Garonne. And after a return to school focused on education, ecology and purchasing power, the president refocused on the theme of security. He also mentioned “rural areas”.
In the afternoon, Emmanuel Macron participated in the inauguration of the new gendarmerie barracks in Tonneins, a town located about forty kilometers northwest of Agen. He revealed the map of the 238 new gendarmerie brigades, most of which will be new mobile trucks to “redeploy on the ground” in rural or peri-urban areas. “This reinvestment is historic,” declared the Head of State. This effort must partly compensate for the more than 500 brigades eliminated between 2007 and 2016, underlines the Elysée. 20 Minutes takes stock of Emmanuel Macron’s short speech.
On security
Emmanuel Macron detailed his security announcements, including the 238 new gendarmerie brigades. And straight away, the Head of State launched: “we have a security problem” everywhere in France, to justify the creation of these brigades. And the Head of State detailed: these creations represent 2,144 additional gendarmerie positions, out of the 8,500 creations of law enforcement personnel announced by the government by the end of the five-year term.
“This is a need of the entire country. “It’s a need for security and order,” said Emmanuel Macron, picking up on the attack on the mayor of Clairac “a few years ago.” “During the last twenty years we have closed brigades, we have disinvested in justice, and there is insecurity because there is not enough presence. (…) And there is no security if there is no justice,” continued the president, adding that these new brigades would “deter but also simplify people’s lives”.
“There will be 3,500 more gendarmes in the coming years,” the president promised again on France 3. And “rehiring several thousand police officers and gendarmes” should cost 15 billion euros according to Emmanuel Macron. To find out more, click here.
A way to take care of your right?
The head of state refused to preempt right-wing themes. Is this a way to take care of your right in Lot-et-Garonne, asked our colleague from France 3? “The right to live in peace has no political color,” replied the president, while two out of three deputies are National Rally (RN) elected officials in Lot-et-Garonne. The creation of these brigades “is a way of standing alongside our fellow citizens who want the right to live in peace,” said the Head of State.
On drug trafficking in Marseille and medium-sized towns
“We are pounding, we are pounding, we are going to dismantle the networks. We are setting up support forces, punch, CRS in the most difficult neighborhoods,” assured the Head of State regarding the deal points in the sights of the police in Marseille, in Valence, Aix-en-Provence or even Nîmes. Emmanuel Macron assured that “the army” was “not intended to maintain order among us. “It is the work of the police and the gendarmes, the army is there to fight enemies,” explained the president, ensuring that the State was acting without respite and by investing. “We are acting and that’s why things are moving,” said Emmanuel Macron, referring to the serial settling of scores in the difficult neighborhoods of Marseille, “encysted” by drug trafficking.
On health in rural areas
“We have a problem with doctors in France,” admitted Emmanuel Macron to whom our colleague from France 3 pointed out that there was only one 74-year-old general practitioner in Clairac. “We are alongside the municipalities to continue to attract doctors,” added the president, who recalled the end of the numerus clausus. “We are fighting alongside rural mayors. We are fighting to delegate tasks, with pharmacists for example (…) We must free up caregiver time, attract younger doctors to rural areas, and by coming together to delegate the acts that they can delegate,” said listed the president who greeted “the doctors” and spoke of a “secular priesthood”.
On global warming
Quickly questioned at the very end of the interview on global warming, Emmanuel Macron affirmed that “France has done the job” in recent years, in terms of greenhouse gas emissions. “We’re getting to the heart of the matter,” he said again about ecological planning, which he detailed a week ago.
In conclusion, Emmanuel Macron assured that there was “no inevitability” regarding medical deserts, insecurity or global warming.