Grégoire de Fournas
Member of the National Assembly
for Gironde's 5th constituency
Assumed office
22 June 2022
Preceded byBenoît Simian
Personal details
Born
Grégoire de Fournas de Brosse

(1985-03-19) 19 March 1985
Lesparre-Médoc, France
Political partyNational Rally (2011–present)
OccupationWinegrower, politician

Grégoire de Fournas de Brosse (born 19 March 1985) is a French politician and winegrower who has represented the 5th constituency of the Gironde department in the National Assembly since 2022. A member of the National Rally (RN), he has also been a municipal councillor of Pauillac since 2020. De Fournas held a seat in the Departmental Council of Gironde for the canton of Le Nord-Médoc from 2015 to 2021.

Biography

Grégoire de Fournas holds Brevet de technicien supérieur qualifications in agricultural studies, viticulture and oenology. His family runs the Château Vieux Cassan vineyard in Saint-Germain-d'Esteuil of which he became the director in 2010.[1]

He was elected a departmental councillor of Gironde in the canton of Le Nord-Médoc in 2015. He campaigned against the construction of a nearby windfarm. In 2020, he was elected a municipal councillor of Pauillac.

In the 2022 legislative election, he was elected in the 5th constituency of Gironde unseating La République En Marche! (LREM) representative Benoît Simian.[2] A profile in Libération described De Fournas as a "staunch defender of hunting, fiercely opposed to wind turbines, the installations of which he virulently combats."[1]

2022 ban from Parliament

On 3 November 2022, during the government question period in the National Assembly, De Fournas interrupted fellow representative Carlos Martens Bilongo's remarks on the situation of migrants on the SOS Méditerranée ship Ocean Viking, shouting "Qu'il retourne en Afrique!" which can be translated either to "He just has to go back to Africa then!" or "It just has to go back to Africa then!"

De Fournas's outburst was deemed racist by other MPs, though it was unclear whether he was referring to Bilongo or the ship.[3][4][5] De Fournas rejected the racism accusation, saying he was referring to the ship. National Assembly President Yaël Braun-Pivet suspended the meeting following the remarks. De Fournas later received a 15-day ban from the National Assembly and had his pay docked.[6]

References

  1. 1 2 Taburet, Marceau (20 June 2022). "Marin, factrice, ouvrière agricole, femmes de ménage: ces nouveaux métiers qui entrent à l'Assemblée nationale" [Sailor, postwoman, agricultural worker, cleaning women: these new professions entering the National Assembly]. Libération (in French). Retrieved 20 June 2022.
  2. ↑ Lestage, Julien (20 June 2022). "Législatives en Gironde : cinq choses à savoir sur Grégoire de Fournas, nouveau député RN du Médoc" [Legislatives in Gironde: five things to know about Grégoire de Fournas, new RN deputy for Médoc]. sudouest.fr (in French). Retrieved 20 June 2022.
  3. ↑ "Racism row over French far-right MP's 'go back to Africa' outburst". euronews. 2022-11-04. Retrieved 2022-11-04.
  4. ↑ "Séance interrompue à l'Assemblée nationale après des propos à teneur raciste d'un député RN" [Session interrupted in the National Assembly after racist remarks by an RN deputy]. LeMonde.fr (in French). 3 November 2022. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  5. ↑ Jackson, Patrick; Thomas, Merlyn (4 November 2022). "French parliament stopped over 'racist' remark". British Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
  6. ↑ "French far-right MP temporarily suspended for shouting "Go back to Africa"". Reuters. 4 November 2022.
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