Following an initial statement last week, here is a new broadside from socialist elected officials against the financial management of the Metropolis.
The trio (in alphabetical order) Allemand, Cuturello, Dorejo, on the eve of the budget orientation debate next Monday, spares no words and simply defines it as: “the budget of lies and renouncements.”
The stage is set and the tone too: we will listen to Patrick Allemand, like a new Cicero defending public virtues, rise from his bench, point his finger at the Metropolis president, and utter the fateful phrase: “until when…”* as a form of accusation?
Why the renouncement?
Christian Estrosi had always claimed fiscal invariance as one of the strengths of his management. However, he has just created a property tax of 6.4%.
“Maybe he will tell us he didn’t increase taxes because this is a new tax …”- mocks Patrick Allemand- recalling the two previous increases of the housing tax by 15% in 2009 and the reduction of the relief by 5% in 2014.
Second indication: the sale of almost all shares (4 out of the 5% held) of the management company of Nice Airport.
Patrick Allemand takes pleasure in recalling the “insurrectionary” behavior of Christian Estrosi when the socialist government (especially the then Minister of Economy Emmanuel Macron launched the privatization process): accusation of depredation of the Niçois heritage, organizing a referendum with suffocating propaganda to support the “NO”.
“Today all these reasons are forgotten as well as the famous blocking minority to make cash: 80/100 million euros in three, to alleviate the financial health condition”- said the opponent.
Why does this coincide with that?
The answer is simple: the situation is worsening and the official figures assumed (638 million) only represent the stock of loans in the main budget, to which must be added the additional budgets for transport (financing of the tramway which allowed Patrick Allemand to controversially return to the extra costs of the tunnel), sanitation, water, arc, and parking, for a total of nearly 1.4 billion.
Is there cause for alarm?
The socialist elected officials claim to know that the local finance alert system has indeed been activated by the prefect of Alpes-Maritimes.
“I contacted him by letter on March 7, 2018. He replied by email on March 8, 2018. The prefect confirmed the existence of this letter and promised to send it to me very quickly”- said Patrick Allemand.
If this version of the facts turns out to be true, it would be a grievance for Christian Estrosi not to have made it public. Transparency is a duty, not an option when one has a public responsibility.
The conclusion of the socialist elected officials resembles a political act: “For years I have been denouncing the budgetary drifts that have brought us to the current situation with a debt approaching 1.4 billion and a debt capacity of 11.3 years. The metropolis no longer has much room to borrow.”
Paul Cuturello takes the opportunity to slip in a small stink bomb: “During his presidency of the General Council, the debt increased from 92 to 900 million in 4 years. Now, at the Metropolis, we are close to 1.5 billion, four times more than during the time of the Urban Community.»
And if we add the debt of the City of Nice, we reach nearly 2 billion.
What is the real state of the Metropolis’ finances?
The question arises and the figures cannot be the subject of sleight of hand!
Christian Estrosi has made public investment a strategic axis of his strategy. He has financed it largely through loans, taking advantage of favorable financial market conditions.
This is good, but it is necessary to maintain a correct “sustainability” capacity of the debt based on repayment capability. Otherwise, one falls into addiction and a negative spiral that ultimately leads to a crash.
If we analyze the budget figures, we see that, in 2018, the repayment of the debt is 120 million, almost as much as the amount of investments (420 million over three years, or 140 million pro-rata per year).
The dividing line is simply there.
Has it been crossed – as the socialist elected officials denounce – or not?
