On vacation in Ibiza, the Balearic island, when publishing the January back-to-school protocol late, the Minister of Education is now coming under criticism from all sides.
He is in the spotlight, but not that of a Balearic nightclub. The day after Mediapart’s revelations about the whereabouts of Jean-Michel Blanquer – in Ibiza – at the time of the publication of the health protocol for the start of the school year in January, which turned sour in just a few days, the Minister of Education is the target of sharp pikes from the opposition.
“It’s the feeling of the return of bling-bling at a time when everyone is asked to tighten their belts”, deplores this Tuesday morning Olivier Faure, the first secretary of the Socialist Party, on France Info. “When there is no trust between a minister and his own administration, its own agents who devote themselves for two years, obviously it’s very complicated. Jean-Michel Blanquer should draw all the conclusions and the President of the Republic with him.
“He despises the educational community”
The night before, the boss of the PS had lambasted on Twitter the reasons for the late publication of the protocol: “The delay in communication was officially linked to the need to stick to the reality of the start of the school year. When improvisation arises from a lie, trust is no longer possible. A tirade accompanied by the hashtag #BlanquerRemission. A call joined by the deputies of La France Insoumise, Mathilde Panot and Daniele Obono.
Anne Hidalgo does not, however, join these calls: “I never ask for the resignation of ministers or civil servants.” Corn she adds: “You have to judge him on his acts as ministers, where he showed all his shortcomings. […] He has the right to take vacations, but it’s very offhand. […] This will have political consequences in the sense that it weakens it even more.”
Yannick Jadot was even more severe on Twitter: “Instead of preparing with teachers and parents of students for a return to school under Covid, the minister organized a media stunt with his feet in the sand. This level of contempt and irresponsibility is not acceptable.” This Tuesday morning, the environmental candidate returns to the controversy: “For months, he has despised the educational community. The level of unpreparedness on the protocols calls into question its function. It is a lack of professionalism. He is a dilettante!” he asserts on France 2.
The ecologist deputy of Maine-et-Loire, Matthieu Orphelin, also pointed to social media “a new big communication error which should not calm the situation”.
And it would seem that the ex-campaign director of Jadot is right, judging by the first reactions from the world of education. “There is a disconnect between what Ibiza represents and what the people experience. [enseignants]. This revelation feeds the fracture and the feeling of contempt that many personnel in the National Education may have, ” regret this tuesday morning on FranceInfo Guislaine David, co-secretary general and spokesperson for SNUipp-FSU.