Macron says ‘extremely proud’ of aiding Uber’s lobbying drive as thousands of jobs created

French President Emmanuel Macron, on Tuesday, said he was proud of supporting the US cab-hailing company Uber while serving as finance minister of the nation from 2014 to 2016 and would “do it again tomorrow and the day after tomorrow”. His remarks come after revelations of his efforts to help the company lobby against France’s closed-shop taxi industry. He said the deals were done in an 'open environment', with several ministers and officials attending the meeting. It is to mention that cache of 1,24,000 company documents, which is dubbed 'Uber files', were leaked to The Guardian and shared with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ). According to the leaked documents, Macron had close dealings with Uber executives and business lobbyists when he was France’s economy minister.

This resulted in a major row in the country, with Opposition leaders now demanding the resignation of the incumbent President. Some lawmakers considered a no-confidence motion against his government. The Opposition leaders accused him of representing the "interests of multinational companies" instead of "struggling workers" in France. Meanwhile, on Tuesday, when he reached a plant in the French Alps, journalists raised questions about his close proximity with Uber executives. Reacting to the questions, Macron said he was doing his job 'perfectly' as a country's finance minister from 2014-16 and added he was extremely proud of what he did in the past. According to him, it was his job to create job opportunities for French people and added Uber gave great opportunities to the youngsters seeking a 'good' career in their own country.

"I was the minister and I was doing my job. I am extremely proud (...) to have fought as economy minister to attract foreign companies. We have created thousands of jobs," he said. 

Macron admits his meeting with Uber's top executives

Notably, Uber entered the French market in 2011 despite massive opposition from Macron's opponent . The appearance of the ride-hailing app caused furious resentment among French taxi drivers and years of legal battles over regulations and protections for Uber drivers. Meanwhile, on Tuesday, several Opposition leaders demanded a parliamentary investigation into the latest revelation. Though his allies dismissed allegations of wrong-doing, Macron admitted meeting with Uber executives and many other business leaders when he was economy minister. He said that while in that role, he helped bring foreign companies to the country and to break down administrative barriers faced by French entrepreneurs. "We empowered young people in (economically) deprived neighbourhoods and got them employed for the first time in their lives," Macron said.

(With inputs from AP)

(Image: AP/Pixabay)