The deputy of Essonne Jérôme Guedj, ex-refronde, became one of the pillars of the socialist group in the National Assembly, where he put in difficulty the Minister of Labor Olivier Dussopt, by carefully checking his declarations, during the pension debate.
On February 16, while the National Assembly is in turmoil over the pension reform project, the deputy will ask the Social Security directorate for documents on the consequences of the reform, in his capacity as vice-president of the Mission of evaluation and control of social security at the National Assembly.
In the hemicycle, figures in support, he questions the “sincerity” of the data put forward by the Minister of Labor, in particular on the number of people who will benefit from the retirement at 1,200 euros gross monthly, provoking the fury of that -this.
“You’ve been losing control for a few days,” Olivier Dussopt told him, refusing to “report” on how he made his forecasts.
Jérôme Guedj then continues his work of verifying the facts by bringing to light a note from the Council of State, which expresses doubts on the constitutionality of several provisions of the government text.
“This is one of the times when Parliament was able to prove that it was independent,” notes PS deputy Arthur Delaporte. “We were very proud”.
At 51, the former president of the Essonne General Council (2011-2015), and regional councilor for Ile-de-France since 2021, returned to the forefront of the political scene during the June legislative elections, by beating the former Macronist minister Amélie de Montchalin in the 6th district of Essonne.
A constituency he had already represented from 2012 to 2014, as deputy to François Lamy, then minister under François Hollande.
The former student of Sciences-Po and ENA, entered the General Inspectorate of Social Affairs, has shorter hair than at the time but the chin is still square and determined. In the hemicycle, he is one of those we hear.
“At home, yelling does not hide a lack of knowledge of the files”, remarks the rebellious deputy Hadrien Clouet. “It’s the closest to what we’re trying to do” within the rebellious group.
“Jérôme Guedj speaks Mélenchon 1st and 2nd language”, notes Arthur Delaporte, because he was his parliamentary assistant in the Senate and campaigned with him when the rebellious leader was elected in Essonne.
But the two men were angry when Jean-Luc Mélenchon left the PS with a bang in 2008. They met again in May – even if they no longer have a personal relationship – with the creation of Nupes.
This alliance is “a makeover” which “washed us of the errors of the left which had gone astray”, explained Mr. Guedj recently to AFP.
Because during his first visit to the National Assembly, Mr. Guedj was one of those socialist “slingers” who, in April 2014, refused to place their trust in the government of Manuel Valls.
He “keeps this socialist Left culture (ex-current of Jean-Luc Mélenchon and Julien Dray), an agit-prop side”, underlines a socialist deputy, who notes that “when he arrived in June, certain former deputies looked at him with mistrust.
“Every morning, I get up telling myself that in 2027 the National Rally will win” and “that we have to prevent it” with the union of the left, defends Jérôme Guedj.
Within the PS, where the alliance with rebellious France is not unanimous, some consider him “an individualist”, “attracted by the media”, reports an elected official. “He has a strong personality but he’s not a team leader in the group.”
“It is sure that he does not always agree with what his group defends”, underlines an Insoumis.
But for the environmental deputy Benjamin Lucas, Jérôme Guedj “is now one of those who have a role to play in the credibility” of Nupes.
The rebellious Raquel Garrido, who has known him for 30 years, agrees: “He cleverly uses the historical ties he has with some of us” to hold the alliance together.
02/26/2023 12:08:50 – Paris (AFP) – © 2023 AFP
