Le Pen guilty of ‘organised, optimised and systematised embezzlement’ of 4.6m euros of public funds

A French court on Monday convicted Marine Le Pen of embezzlement and barred her from seeking public office for five years — a hammer blow to the far-right leader’s presidential hopes and an earthquake for French politics. For in-depth analysis and a deeper perspective, FRANCE 24’s Delano D’Souza welcomes Dr Andrew Smith, Historian of modern France and Lecturer in Liberal Arts at Queen Mary University of London.