Please find an extract in the newspaper ” Les Annonces de la Seine”. It is a resume of the event concerning the tenth birthday of the Mediation, celebrated on March 13th of this year in Bercy

Les Annonces de la Seine

The tenth anniversary of the mediation which was celebrated on march 13th of this year, was the opportunity for Emmanuel CONSTANS , Mediator of Ministries of the Economy and the Budget, to submit its annual report 2011 to François BAROIN, Minister of Economy, Finance and Industry and Valérie PECRESSE, Minister of the Budget, Public Accounts and the State reform, Government Sopkeswoman.

Established by a decree n°2002-612 of April 26th, 2002, the Mediator of Bercy aims at simplifying the relationships between users, physical persons (taxpayers, consumers, storekeepers, business managers…) and legal entities (companies, associations…) with the services of the ministries.

Within 10 years, 28 000 disputes were looked into by the Mediator of Ministries of the Economy, Finance and Industry. With 3 410 requests received in 2011, he registered the highest number of request since its creation, what represents a 3% increase compared with 2010.

The requests of mediation emanating from private individuals dominated, whereas those formulated by companies strongly decreased because of the economic  crisis.

The Mediator of Bercy is also « a real actor of the evolution of the public service” because he formulates in every annual report proposals likely to improve the functioning of the services of ministries in their relations with the users.

In 2011, Emmanuel CONSTANS formulated ten proposals joining within the framework of the improvement of the quality of the service provided to  users through the simplification of obligations and administrative procedures, broadcasting of an optimal information and strengthening of the legal security, in particular with regard to understanding and accessibility of the standard.

More than 80% of 150 reforms or recommendations proposed for ten years were effected, either totally or partially. François BAROIN reminded that this mediation which allows the State “to intervene quickly, individually, on economic stakes which are often determining for companies or private individuals, gained widespread acceptance in a way” because three other mediators intervene from now on in Bercy on very specific questions : Gérard RAMEIX, mediator of the Credit; Jean-Claude VOLOT, Mediator of the Industrials Inter-Enterprises and subcontracting Relations; and Eric GISSLER, Mediator of High-risk loans.

Minister of Finance so underlined its attachment in the « French model » being characterized by a set of eighteen mediators specialized in very diverse fields associating ministerial mediations, mediation of sectors and mediation of companies  : “this very relevant system continues to show its ability”.

Jean-René Tancrède

The Club of the Mediators held its annual meeting with consumer’s Associations on march 22nd of this year. The event concerned essentially the evolution of the national and European legal frameworks concerning the mediation and the current events of the Club.

For more details, please consult the attached document.

Meeting with the associations of consumers

On March 22nd of this year, the Club invited, as does every year, approved consumers’ associations for an exchange on the main news headlines.

The President of the Club of the Mediators of Services to the Public emphasised the importance of this meeting in compliance with the partnership concluded between consumers’ associations and the Club and which allowed in particular the elaboration and the broadcasting of the ” Guide of the partnership “.

The members of the Club then made a point on the current events and on the recent changes intervened in 2011: its  constitution in association law 1901, which allows itto work in a more structured way, the creation of the web site and the development and the strengthening of the formation/training device.

The approach of the association to widen its composition in a  progressive and measured way to respect the efficiency of the Club was translated by the membership of three new members: the Mediator of Water, the Mediator of Electronic Communications and the Mediator of Employment Agency.

The evolutions of the national and European legal frameworks were also widely evoked : transposition of the directive of May, 2008 on the mediation in civil and commercial subjects, operated by the prescription of November 18th, 2011, as the proposal of the Directive on the extra-judicial regulation of the disputes of consumption or the project of regulation on the on-line treatment of the disputes of consumption, both in the course of adoption.

The President of the Commission of the Mediation of the Consumption, Madam Elyane ZARINE presented for her part the works and in particular the implementation under her aegis of a device of referencing of the mediators.

The rich debates between consumers’ associations and members of the Club showed in particular the attachment of all the participants to the existence of a mediation for the service of consumers, which guarantees to th0se free access, efficiency and impartiality

The Commission of the Mediation of the Consumption has just proceeded to the first referencing of systems of mediation, according to the law which created it in 2010, in the missions which it has received from public authorities, and in its charter publlished in 2011. The latter allows to estimate the new mediations and those existing in order to protect its quality to consumers and favor the implementation of sectorial or companies mediation devices, covering all the domains of consumption

For further information click the following link: http://www.mediation-conso.fr/doc/CP_mediateur s_references_CMC_1.pdf

On the occasion of the annual meeting of the Correspondants of the Mediator of the Ministries of the Economy and the Budget and the celebration of the 10^th Anniversary of the mediaion of Bercy, on Tuesday, march 13^th, the Minister M. François BAROIN evoked three determining axes for the future of the Mediation. Theses consists in making better known the existing devices for mediation, protect their diversity and put the human being at the heart of their activity.

Please find :  the speech pronounced by Mister François BAROIN

10^th Anniversary  of the Mediation of Bercy

Mister François BAROIN’s intervention

Minister of Economy, Finance and Industry

Tuesday, March 13th, 2012

Bercy

Mediator of the Ministries of the Economy and the Budget, dear Emmanuel CONSTANS,

Ladies and Gentlemen the mediators,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am very happy to take part  in this annual meeting of the Correspondents of the Mediator of the Ministries of the Economy and the Budget.

It is also the opportunityfor me to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the mediation in Bercy and to evoke some future prospects

I welcome the fact that the mediation occupies so important a place within this great  house today.

The teaching of these last 10 years, it is that mediation is at the heart of the movement which we adopted  to bring the administration and  the users closer.

Thanks to the mediation, the State can intervene quickly, individually, on economic stakes which are often determining for companies or private individuals.

It is not moreover a coincidence if your mediation gained widespread acceptance in a way, dear Emmanuel Constans : three other mediators intervene from now on in Bercy on very specific questions :

• Gérard RAMEIX, Mediator of Credit;
• Jean-Claude VOLOT, Mediator of the Industrial Inter-enterprises and Subcontracting relations;
• and Eric GISSLER, Mediator for High-risk loans.

The work which you do with your teams is very precious, quite particularly in a so difficult context as the one we have known.

To quote only two examples, from the beginning of the crisis, Bercy ensures a constant follow-up of the corporate credit and local authorities. With Eric GISSLER (who I greet) we prevent unsustainable debt situations with toxic loans to local authorities. The charter, the promotion of which he insures, already carries its fruits.

And with Jean-Claude VOLOT, we remain watchful on the good quality of the industrial inter-enterprises relations and quite particularly as regards the industrial companies which are affected by the international situation.

During year 2011, dear Emmanuel CONSTANS, with the support of your team, you handled 3 410 requests of mediation. Two thirds of the requests with which you were seized gave satisfaction for the extremely reduced deadlines.

You were also a real actor of the evolution of the public service : 150 proposals which you formulated to improve the relations between the economic and financial ministries and the citizens were almost all implemented.

I also wish salute the independence of your work and the quality of your cooperation with all the servicesof the ministry. The narrow relations which you maintain with the services are naturally a factor of success. Beyond your activity of mediation to the ministry, you chair the consultative Committee of the Financial Sector, as well as the Commission of mediation of the Convention ” Get insurance and borrow with a aggravated health risk” (AERAS)

You take an active part in the works of the Commission of the Mediation of the Consumption, of which the president is among us [Madam Elyane ZARINE] today.

It is not only in Bercy where mediation is rapidly expanding. At the instigation of Jean-Paul DELEVOYE, it has also developed in numerous public services. I take advantage of it moreover to greet Bernard DREYFUS, the representative of mister Dominique BAUDIS.

The Club of the Mediators of services to the public, whom you chair, dear Emmanuel, counts 18 mediators operating  in very diverse domains.

I see that there are many here today, and I want to greet them all, and I send them my thanks for the quality of their work. 

• Marielle COHEN-BRANCHE, Mediator of the Authority of financial markets
• Henri d’OYSONVILLE, Mediator of the Caisse des Dépots
• Claire BRISSET, Mediator of the City of Paris
• Marie-Laure AUGRY, Mediator for France 3 News services
• Bernard CIEUTAT, Mediator for SNCF (French National Railway Corporation)
• Michel ASTRUC, Mediator at Gaz de France ;
• Jocelyne CANETTI, Mediator for EDF(French Electricity Company) ;
• Jean-Louis WALTER, Mediator at Pôle Emploi(The French Employment Agency)
• Pierre SEGURA, Mediator at La Poste (the French Postal Service) 

This club is the proof of the vitality of institutional mediation and its diversity.

Today, thanks to your investment, the « French style » mediation is known and recognized. It joined in an European frame fixed by a directive in  2008, and recently transposed into France.

It is an additional security, in the eyes of the general public, of your impartiality, your efficiency and the respect for the confidentiality for  the treated cases.

To conclude, I would want to underline three axes which seem to me to determine that the mediation pursues its virtuous trajectory.

The first one, is to make the existing devices of mediation better known. It is essential that the citizens, companies –in particular small and medium companies- are informed about the existence of mediators, who are there to accompany them if necessary.

Your action is already recognized, but it is necessary that it is it even more widely known.

The second axis, is naturally the conservation of the diversity of the mediation devices.
The ” French model ” which I evoked, is exactly a set of mediators specialized in very precise sectors. It associates ministerial mediations, mediations of sector and mediations of companies.
This model can live with others, and we have the capacity to demonstrate in Brussels that the ” unique model ” is not the alpha and the omega of the mediation.

My conviction is that the French system is very relevant and continues to show its ability.
The recent current events have demonstrated it to us: with Gérard RAMEIX, I met banks on the questions of credit. They agreed to free about 10 billions € of new credits to local authorities in 2012.

It is a strong commitment on behalf of credit institutions, but it is also the result of a work of negotiation, in which the role of the mediator is always precious. We thus have to defend our model, and the best way to defend it, i  is to have higher quality requirements always.

The Third axis of reflection: it is essential that the mediation remains centered on human beings.

Behind every case treated by the mediations, in particular in Bercy, there is often the survival of a company which is at stake.

Behind every case of mediation, there is thus the activity and the  employment of several employees, there is also a project of an entrepreneur. Your work of prevention of the disputes requires a constant attention on the peculiarities of each case. You bring right and fair solutions to each, by taking into account the context in which we evolve and individual difficulties which can exist. I wish naturally whether that this is always the case.

Well, Ladies and Gentlemen, some elements which I wanted to recall on the occasion of this anniversary.
I thank you and congratulate you again on your commitment to the service of the French people.

Following the proposal of a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on alternative dispute resolution for consumer disputes (RELC), the Club of the Mediators makes known  ​​its position and its wish to bring  some changes concerning  important points.
Please find the attached document :

Proposition de Directive RELC – position du Club des Médiateurs de Services au Public