Last week, it was reported in French media that the EBU President, Delphine Ernotte and the Mayor of Nice were taken into police custody regarding an ongoing investigation into the funding of the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2023 held in Nice.
EBU President Delphine Ernotte questioned over JESC 2023 funding
Recently, an active investigation into the organisation of the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2023 and the Nice Climate Summit began. Both of these events took place in the city of Nice. The investigation surrounds embezzlement of public funding, forgery of documents and conflicts of interest. Among the dozen people summoned for questioning were the Mayor and Mayoress of Nice and Delphine Ernotte, who is the current EBU President and also the President of France Télévisions. France Télévisions are the broadcaster responsible for France’s participation in Junior Eurovision and Eurovision. They were the host broadcaster in charge of Junior Eurovision 2023 in Nice.
During the Nice contest, Mayoress Laura Tenoudji who is also a France 2 journalist, played a key role in the contest. She co-hosted the opening ceremony. At the time, people called the appointment into question. Citing a lack of proficiency in English for such an important duty. Part of the investigation is assessing whether Laura’s active role in JESC constituted a conflict of interest due to her husband being the Mayor of the city that provided public funding of 605,000 euros for the event. The judicial system wants to learn if the appointment was made by France Télévisions or through the municipality.
France Télévisions came under scrutiny following a complaint from local Green Party Councillors. They questioned the financial aspects of the Nice Climate Summit which has since expanded the investigation to cover the Nice hosting of Junior Eurovision in 2023. Police have searched the offices of France Télévisions and Nice City Hall, seizing documentation for the investigation in the process.
Released without charge while investigation continues
In the evening of the police questioning, the suspects were released without any charges filed at this time. However, the investigation remains ongoing. A lawyer for the Mayor of Nice stated:
“As a result of the responses that Christian Estrosi (Mayor of Nice) provided, it was decided to lift the measure without notifying him of any charges.”
In reaction, the defence team have filed a complaint for malicious accusation.
Laura Tenoudji’s lawyer also responded to the accusations:
“This accusation by opposition members, on the eve of a new electoral deadline, is particularly shocking.”
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