France's far-right Jean-Marie Le Pen to launch new political movement
Front National founder Jean-Marie Le Pen says he plans to create a new movement that will not compete with the far-right party which suspended him this month.
Issued on: Modified:
Le Pen has been suspended from the party led by his daughter for remarks about the Holocaust and France’s collaborationist World War II Vichy regime, as Marine Le Pen is eager to clean up the party’s image and distance herself from her father.
The 86-year-old patriarch says he has no plans to launch an alternative to the Front National (FN).
"I'm not going to start another party," he told France's Radio Courtoisie. "I will create a grouping that does not compete with the FN.”
Jean-Marie Le Pen said his movement will "weigh in to restore the political line that was followed for decades" by the FN.
Earlier this month, Le Pen said he was "ashamed" to share a surname with his daughter, who has led the party since 2011. He also said he would not support her in presidential elections in 2017.
But in the radio interview Monday he praised her “great qualities”.
"She is a stand-up person, who shoulders overwhelming responsibilities," he said.
Daily newsletterReceive essential international news every morning
Subscribe