French police raid homes of health minister and ex-PM in coronavirus probe

Senior government figures are being investigated over their handling of the pandemic

France’s health minister Olivier Veran is one of the senior figures under investigation (REUTERS)

Police in France have carried out dawn raids on the homes of the country’s former prime minister, current and former health ministers, and other senior officials, as part of an inquiry into the government response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Covid-19 patients, doctors, prison and police personnel and others in France have filed dozens of complaints in recent months, notably over shortages of masks and other equipment, prompting the Paris prosecutor to order an investigation.

The offices of health minister Olivier Veran, as well as the private addresses of former prime minister Edouard Philippe, Veran and his predecessor Agnès Buzyn, and Sibeth Ndiaye, ex-spokeswoman for President Emmanuel Macron, were searched on Thursday, the French health ministry has confirmed.

Geneviève Chêne, director general of the French public health agency, as well as top health ministry official Jérôme Salomon, were also targeted in the police raids, which his department said were conducted “without any difficulties”.

A source close to Edouard Philippe, who remains mayor of the port town of Le Havre in Normandy, told AFP that he “has always said that he was willing to put himself at the disposal of the authorities”. They said that the search was carried out “in a courteous manner and with the full cooperation of the mayor".

The high-profile interventions took place on the morning after President Macron addressed the nation to reinstate a public health emergency and announce curfews in Paris and eight other cities to deal with the rising toll of new infections.

The nightly curfews come into effect between 9pm and 6am from Saturday and will affect almost a third of the country’s population in major cities, including Lyon and Marseille, as well as the capital and its surrounding region.

Enforceable by a 135 euro (£122) fine, the measures will stop people visiting restaurants and private homes in the evening and night-time and will be applied for four weeks to begin with, with the government seeking to extend it to six.

A further 22,951 Covid-19 infections were confirmed on Wednesday. Macron said the purpose of the new restrictions was to reduce the current daily rate to around 3,000 cases and to ease the burden on intensive care units in hospitals.

“We cannot get through this if everyone doesn’t play their part, doesn't do their bit. So I am saying very clearly the message I came to convey this evening: I need every one of you, we need each one of us,” Macron said in his TV address.

Under French law, the president has immunity from prosecution during his term of office and cannot be held accountable in the court investigation, launched to “uncover any possible criminal offences” by national decision-makers.