ANKARA

Emmanuel Macron’s 2017 and 2022 presidential campaigns are under the microscope as France’s financial prosecutor PNF expands its existing probe into US-based consultancy group McKinsey, according to a French newspaper.

In a statement on Thursday, the PNF confirmed it was extending its ongoing investigation into possible tax fraud by McKinsey to include the role of consultancy firms in the 2017 and 2022 French election races.

It said the probe will focus on potentially improper bookkeeping of campaign accounts and allegations of favoritism.

While the PNF did not directly name Macron or any other politician or party, the daily Le Parisien reported that the investigation is centered on the French president’s campaigns.

French authorities launched an initial investigation into McKinsey in March after a Senate inquiry on the influence of private consulting firms in the country’s public policy.

The probe was triggered after the Senate inquiry accused McKinsey of benefiting from a tax arrangement that allowed it to pay no corporate tax in France between 2011 and 2020.

McKinsey has previously denied any wrongdoing.

Regarding the new PNF probe, the French presidency said it was “up to the courts to conduct these investigations independently,” local media reported.