Dear John,

The front page of France’s Libe couldn’t have been more clear this morning: Marine Le Pen is guilty of embezzlement, and it is possible for corrupt politicians to be held to account.

Le Pen, who heads up France’s far-right National Rally party, has spent her career rallying against the European Union, viciously attacking immigrants, and stirring up culture war divisions with tirades about “le wokisme.”

Her bid for the Presidency has been rendered moot, as the politician was found guilty of illegally using European Union funds to fund her own political party.

The irony of Le Pen benefitting financially from an institution she’s railed against for years is not lost on anyone. But the importance of this verdict goes far beyond the National Rally’s hypocrisy:

🔵 The French justice system issued an independent ruling on a critical democratic issue – Liberté

⚪️ The ruling enforced French citizens’ democratic right to participate in fairly funded elections – Egalité

🔴 Le Pen’s inability to run for office for the next five years will hamper the authoritarian National Rally’s ability to attack France’s democratic institutions – Fraternité

Britain and America could both learn a lesson. Our disgraced former Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, was handed a cushy job at the Daily Mail on his way out the door. And as Donald Trump famously said, “I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn’t lose any voters.”

Predictably, the far-right always play the victim whenever basic accountability rules are enforced on them. Le Pen is doing it right now, claiming France is now a “tyranny” under “tyrannical judges ([link removed]) .” Unsurprisingly, The Telegraph and The Spectator’s editors seem to agree.

But real justice doesn’t cater to the victim complexes of demagogues or right-wing tabloids. It holds up the most basic tenet of democracy, that we live in a society, that society has rules we all agree on, and that anyone and everyone who breaks them should face the music.

The rule of law lives on in France today – Vive La République!

All the best,

Mark Kieran

CEO, Open Britain
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