Pascal Clément

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Pascal Clément (born 12 May 1945) is a French conservative politician. Born in Boulogne-Billancourt, Hauts-de-Seine, he is a barrister by training.

Member of the Union for French Democracy (UDF), Clément was elected for the first time Member of the French National Assembly in 1978, representing the Loire departement. He was constantly re-elected. Besides, from 1977 to 2001, he was Mayor of Saint-Marcel-de-Felines.

His first governmental function was Minister-Delegate for Parliamentary Relations, in Edouard Balladur's cabinet, from 1993 to 1995. When the UDF confederation split, in 1998, he joined Liberal Democracy party. Then, it merged in the Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) in 2002. Chairman of National Assembly's Justice Committee, Clément succeeded Dominique Perben as Justice Minister in Dominique de Villepin's cabinet, from 2005 to 2007. In this function, he opposed to Interrior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy, who criticized what he perceived as a lack of strictness of Justice towards some criminals. When Nicolas Sarkozy was elected President of France in 2007, Clement was not held in the cabinet.

Defeated in his district at the 2008 departmental election, he lost the presidency of the General Council of Loire, what he held since 1994.