DOES AGNES PANNIER-RUNCHER HAVE TO DO

WITH TAX HAVENS ?

The children of the Minister for Energy Transition Agnès Pannier-Runacher are partners in a French company set up by her father, a former manager of the oil company Perenco, based on funds partly domiciled in tax havens and not mentioned on the declaration of interests of the minister, reports the investigative media Disclose on Tuesday.

Questioned by Disclose, the Minister refers to her father concerning the origin of the funds, of which she says she does not know the investment strategy, and she notes that she does not "have to declare this structure", since the law does not require not to declare the interests of his children. This Tuesday, she notably has "false and slanderous allegations".

No dividend

The minister's father, Jean-Michel Runacher, created this civil society in France, named Arjunem, in 2016 as part of a transfer of assets, bringing it to it for around 1.2 million euros in shares, according to the investigation of Disclose. Four of her grandchildren are partners, including the children of Agnès Pannier-Runacher who were minors at the time, and for whom the minister signed as legal representative.

She explained in a detailed response that they were bare owners and therefore received no dividend today, Jean-Michel Runacher remaining the usufructuary, and that Arjunem was indeed “subject to French taxation”. According to Disclose, this heritage comes from hedge funds, based in Delaware, Ireland and Guernsey, and in which Perenco also held investments. The financial products are deposited in a bank in Luxembourg, confirmed Agnès Pannier-Runacher.

"It's not about my heritage"

Of the Arjunem company, the minister does not mention in her declarations to the High Authority for the transparency of public life (HATVP). The law obliges him to declare his direct participations and those of his spouse, but not those of his children. “It is not about my heritage, but that of my children who, themselves, have no power to manage the company to date”, replied Agnès Pannier-Runacher to Disclose.

"The HATVP guide leaves no ambiguity that I did not have to declare this structure," she said. On the origin of the funds, Jean-Michel Runacher “contributed fund units that have no connection with Perenco. These are investments acquired in the past through his personal investments,” she said, referring to her father “for more details.”

"Whatever the legal form of these funds, the unitholder pays the taxation of his country of residence", also said the minister, who also sees no conflict of interest between his ministerial duties and the activities of his father, a former manager of Perenco.

"I did not have to deal with files related to Perenco", which "exercises most of its activities outside France," she assures.

Certainly, but for the exemplary nature of the politicians in their commitment...