A French court has imposed a jail sentence on far-right leader Marine Le Pen and barred her from seeking public office after it found her guilty of embezzling European Union funds. The Paris court ruled on Monday that Le Pen used more than 3 million euros ($3.3m) of European Parliament funds to pay members of her National Rally (RN) party.

Marine Le Pen, the voice of France’s growing right-wing movement, is appealing her conviction in hopes of overturning the restriction on her ability to run for president of France. Le Pen, the front-runner to replace French President Emmanuel Macron in 2027,

The court's decision will make it more difficult for the weak minority government to make the crucial decisions needed to control a ballooning public debt.