Medef president accuses French state of failure during urban violence

Patrick Martin, president of the Medef, has accused the French state of being ‘defective’ in its response to recent urban violence. The unrest, which affected between 2,000 and 3,000 businesses across several major cities, resulted in widespread looting and attacks on commercial properties.

Martin stated that the state failed to protect businesses and the integrity of entrepreneurs, noting that law enforcement presence appeared ‘under-dimensioned.’ He argued that the government should compensate businesses for operating losses, particularly those without insurance, as taxpayers fund the state to maintain order.

Marc Sanchez, secretary general of the Syndicat des indépendants et des TPE (SDI), echoed these criticisms, calling the state’s protection of businesses a failure. Sanchez has called for the removal of tax and social security charges for periods during which businesses were forced to close due to the violence.