Since July 10, The world and its partners in the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) have published a series of revelations about the “Roaring Twenties” of Uber’s development in France. This information is based on more than 124,000 internal company documents, sent to the British daily The Guardian by a whistleblower, ex-executive of Uber, of which he was one of the main lobbyists: Mark MacGann. These “Uber Files” show in particular the close proximity of the company to the Minister of the Economy at the time, Emmanuel Macron, who wanted “to ensure that France works for Uber so that Uber can work in and for France”according to a statement by Mr. Macron taken from the minutes of a confidential meeting.
The documents also illustrate the practices of a company carrying out particularly aggressive lobbying, with French parliamentarians and European commissioners, and whose assumed strategy was to keep illegal services in operation, such as UberPop in France, in order to influence negotiations with governments. For the first time in France, Mr. MacGann evokes, for The world, Radio France and France Télévisions, his motivations and the revelations from the “Uber Files”. He gives his own reading of these events, the discovery of which provoked strong reactions on the left with regard to the head of state.
Why did you decide to release the “Uber Files” documents to the press?
Because I think the outsized power of some tech companies is a problem for our democracy. I’m a huge Uber fan. I think it’s wonderful technology. I firmly believed that we were going to be able to help people live better in their city, to get around better and safely at a very reasonable price, that we were going to give millions of people a chance until then invisible. People who, in general, did not have the baccalaureate, had not studied, but who were ready to work day and night to feed their families and be able to progress in life.
When I now look at how things have evolved, I tell myself that it was important that I speak my truth. Not to criticize today’s Uber, but to tell those people who feel left behind that we can do better.
What did you want to denounce?
The weakening of our social model. I was one of the leaders of Uber whose job it was to convince governments to change the regulatory and legislative system. My discussions with drivers, and especially what I read in the press, show me that there is a misunderstanding between the dream that was sold to drivers and today’s reality.
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