Fresh claims hit scandal-tainted French minister

French media published fresh allegations against scandal-hit Labour Minister Eric Woerth yesterday, reporting that he sold a state-owned racecourse to an acquaintance at less than market price.

Mr Woerth dismissed as “ridiculous” the reports of wrongdoing in the satirical weekly Le Canard Enchaine and Marianne magazine, insisting the sale of the racecourse in Compiegne, north of Paris, was normal.

But the reports were just the latest in a month-long scandal that has seen Mr Woerth accused of accepting illegal political campaign funding from France’s richest woman and ministerial conflicts of interest.

Those allegations, which like yesterday‘s relate to the time when Mr Woerth was budget minister, sparked calls for his resignation and prompted him to announce on Monday that he would step down as treasurer for the ruling UMP party.

Mr Woerth has denied any wrongdoing and has the backing of President Nicolas Sarkozy, who has accused the media and opponents of mounting a smear campaign.

Le Canard reported in yesterday‘s edition that Mr Woerth oversaw the sale of the land, including the racecourse and a golf course, to a private company, Société des Course de Compiégne, which was renting it at the time.

It said the land was sold for €2.5 million – a fraction of its market value of €20 million, according to the weekly –a week before leaving his post as budget minister at the finance ministry in March.

Le Canard said the president of the company that bought the racecourse, Antoine Gilibert, was a well-known horse-racing fan and local businessman, and an acquaintance of Mr Woerth. Marianne said Mr Gilibert had ties to the UMP.

Reports during the recent scandal revealed that Mr Woerth’s wife Florence was a horse-racing fan and opened a stables in the nearby town of Chantilly, where the minister is also mayor.Mr Woerth dismissed the allegation about the racecourse as “ridiculous,” in comments on RTL radio.

“It wasn’t sold for peanuts, it was sold according to an estimate” by the state body that manages public forests, he said.

“It was sold as part of a policy which I created, to sell properties on state-owned estates,” he added. “You could find a thousand or more cases like it.”

An official at the finance ministry told AFP the sale was done “totally legally and in the interests of the state.”

The official said the sale of plots of state-owned forest land below a certain size was legal as long as it would not be used for logging or harm the environment.

The scandal embroiling Mr Woerth in recent weeks included the revelation that his wife worked for the estate of L‘Oreal billionaire Liliane Bettencourt, who is being investigated for alleged tax evasion, while he was budget minister and tasked with chasing tax dodgers.