My party had no ‘system’ to misuse EU funds, Marine Le Pen tells appeal trial

French far-right leader denies existence of fake jobs ‘system’ in effort to overturn ban on running for president

The French far-right leader Marine Le Pen has told a Paris appeals court there was no “system” set up by her party to misuse European parliament funds, as she gave evidence in a fresh embezzlement trial that will determine whether she can run in the 2027 presidential election.

“The word ‘system’ bothers me because [it gives] the impression of a manipulation,” Le Pen said on Tuesday, denying she had told members of the European parliament to hire assistants who instead worked for the party headquarters in Paris.