Dieschbourg announced her resignation in a press conference on Friday morning after the public prosecutor’s office confirmed that it has forwarded its findings in the Traversini Affair to the President of the Chamber of Deputies Fernand Etgen.
She will be temporarily replaced by her Green Party colleague Claude Turmes, the current Minister for Energy.
Now that Dieschbourg has resigned, she must still decide whether she wants to become a member of the Chamber of Deputies. In that case, she would still have to decide whether or not to give up her parliamentary immunity.
Deputy Prime Minister Paulette Lenert said she was ‘saddened’ and regrets Dieschbourg’s decision, calling her a ‘very committed minister who did her job with passion.’
Lenert said she sympathised with Dieschbourg, her friends and her family, and criticised the process which forced her to resign. Had she remained in her post, she would have been publicly accused and tried by the Chamber of Deputies, a process which Lenert described as unfit for the 21st century and which will be altered.
Lenert added: ‘I think I would have done the same in her place.’
The Green Party meanwhile released a statement praising Dieschbourg for a ‘decision made with integrity’ and called her tenure an ‘unprecedented decade of consistent climate and environmental protection.’ It further thanked her for her ‘since and tireless commitment to citizens, the environment and the planet.’
Déi Gréng president Josée Lorsché said the “Gaardenhaische” affair had been a long-running and deeply taxing situation for the environment minister, and that she had been unable to cope under the pressure.
LSAP president Yves Cruchten said it had been Dieschbourg’s choice and that he respected her decision. The government coalition would continue to stand together, he added.
The CSV and Pirate parties agreed that Dieschbourg’s resignation was long overdue. On Friday, the Chamber office discussed the possibility of a hearing in the Chamber itself. CSV president Martine Hansen said care needed to be taken to ensure no formal errors were made, which could lead to the affair being swept under the rug.
Pirate Party MP Sven Clement was of the opinion that the Chamber should have ordered a hearing on Friday, to ensure the path to justice remained clear.
The public prosecutor’s office has finished its enquiry into the case of former Differdange Mayor Roberto Traversini, dubbed the ‘Affär Gaardenhaischen’ (“Garden Shed Affair”) in Luxembourgish.
The case dates back to 2019, when Traversini, a Green Party politician and at the time Mayor of Differdange, had unauthorised work done on a shed. Traversini eventually resigned as mayor.
Dieschbourg was implicated in the affair as a result of authorisations she issued, which were seen as potentially improper.
As a result, Traversini and Dieschbourg were both subjected to investigations.
Dieschbourg denied any impropriety on her part in October 2019. All checks and balances had worked, according to Dieschbourg, and it was up to the appropriate authorities to analyse the situation from a criminal standpoint.
The matter has now been sent to Etgen by the public prosecutor’s office since Articles 82 and 116 of the constitution grant the Chamber of Deputies the authority to accuse a member of the government. If MPs agree, the case will be remanded to the courts.
In an earlier statement, Dieschbourg said that she needs the Chamber of Deputies’ authorisation to tell investigators her side of the story. She emphasised that she has been cooperating with investigators since 2019 and has “absolutely no doubts” that lifting her immunity is the best course of action. She once again denied any wrongdoing on her part.
