The subject is technical, but that did not prevent the hearing from being highly scrutinized. The commission of inquiry into the financing of public policies by private financiers has so far interviewed representatives of the tax administration or central administrations in charge of education and community life. On the program: financing mechanisms for these private law companies, taxation of donations and transparency of financial flows.
But, while the commission begins hearings of managers of philanthropic companies, the parliamentarians have finally gotten to the heart of the matter: questioning the influence of private foundations in the democratic field – and in particular the influence of Pierre-Édouard Stérin (see our article). Documented by l’Humanité, the far-right billionaire’s “Pericles project” finances training institutes for elected officials like Politicae or Think tanks like the Observatory of Immigration and Demography, with the aim of successfully uniting the rights next time presidential.
“We can no longer say that there are no proven links between the Saint-Louis Academies and Pierre-Édouard Stérinâ€
Auditioned as president of the Saint-Louis Academies – a network of non-contract high schools – Edward Whalley is a key man in the “Stérin system. » The billionaire founder of Smartbox finances foundations, think tanks, institutes or associations through investment funds. One of them is the “Common Good Fund”, directed by Edward Whalley, who is also general director of the company Odyssée Impact and administrator of the Biarritz Olympique rugby club – also owned by Pierre-Édouard Stérin.
Edward Whalley was today only questioned as president of the Saint-Louis Academies – on the only educational aspect of the Stérin project, therefore – but he will be questioned again by the commission of inquiry as director of the Fonds du Bien Commun, which finances more than 99% of the 17 million euros budget for the Academy of Saint-Louis de Chalès, located in Sologne, detailed Edward Whalley.
Questioned on numerous occasions about the precise financing of the Saint-Louis Academies, Edward Whalley did not completely convince the senators present. “There are a certain number of us who have not understood the economic model of the Saint-Louis Academies, with answers that were factually correct, but which never reached the same totals,” reacted after the hearing the socialist rapporteur of the Colombe inquiry commission Brossel. “Already, no one will be able to tell us that there are no proven links between the Saint-Louis Academies and the Common Good Fund [de Pierre-Édouard Stérin]while the same person runs both,” the senator welcomed, and added: “We are not partridges of the year.”
For the questions that remain on the exact financial package that governs the entire Stérin ecosystem, additional hearings will take place – Edward Whalley will notably be auditioned again as director of the Common Good Fund.
A president of the Academy of Saint-Louis de Chalès who has only set foot there once
On the educational side either, Edward Whalley was not really able to answer the senators’ questions. Whether on the content of the lessons or the prices paid by the 63 students enrolled above the average per student, the president of the Saint-Louis Academy of Chalés promised to send more precise answers in writing.
“I am not in detail about the subjects taught, but we respect the common base for the acquisition of knowledge,” he soberly responded to socialist senator Karine Daniel on the way in which the “questions” were addressed. educational programs that concern gender issues” at the Académie Saint-Louis. At the same time, it is difficult to ask more from the president of the Académie Saint-Louis de Chalès, who has only set foot in the establishment once to supervise the work on the site. Reached by telephone after the hearing, the rapporteur Colombe Brossel confirmed that the commission of inquiry had asked to question the representatives of the Académie Saint-Louis de Chalès and that they had been told that Mr. Whalley would be the most able to answer their questions.
“Comprehensive education”: “Each child will be welcomed with respect for the natural order of their sexual identity”
Furthermore, when questioned about the choice of single-sex education made by this establishment outside of the contract, Edward Whalley defended a “logistical choice” which would have obliged the Academy to “rehabilitate another building”, without hiding from a “choice “educational” similar to the 20% of “boarding schools” which are single-sex in the United Kingdom. “It is also an educational choice to create a structuring framework and meet the demands of certain families. Diversity is a question we ask ourselves, and perhaps in the coming years we will open up to young girls,” he explained.
In his introductory remarks, Edward Whalley defended an approach “based on the intelligence, the body and the soul”, in connection with the Catholic Church of France and “integral education”, which he defined as follows: “It is the fact of shining in dimensions other than the purely academic dimension and to become aware of its value through sport, the arts or religion.” The rapporteur (PS) Colombe Brossel could not help but read an extract from the “Charter of Integral Education” concerning diversity, available on the Saint-Joseph Foundation website – endowment fund of which a member sits on the board of directors of the Académie Saint-LouisÂ: “Each child will be welcomed with respect for the natural order of their sexual identity. To help them grow in the esteem of their identity, the children will be educated in accordance with their masculinity or their femininity. »
Edward Whalley did not react and simply distanced himself from Pierre-Édouard Stérin’s positions. “In 2026 in France, I hope that people do not think that an entrepreneur votes like his financier or necessarily shares his political commitment,” he said. Second round in a few weeks.
