The environment and ecology were at the heart of this meeting. This Monday, June 29, 2020, Emmanuel Macron received the members of the Citizens' Climate Convention. For several months, this panel of 150 French people has had the mission to think about solutions and proposals to fight against global warming.
For 45 minutes, the President of the Republic welcomed them in the gardens of theÉlysée Palace to provide several " strong answers " to their 149 proposals.
Before detailing them, Emmanuel Macron was keen to recall the importance of this Citizens' Climate Convention. "Many were calling this idea fanciful and illegitimate. We decided to trust the citizens, which complements and enriches parliamentary democracy," he explained.
Very quickly, the head of state wanted to reassure them."I will go through with this moral contract that binds us. I want all your proposals to be implemented as soon as possible, except for three of them. Those that fall within the regulatory field will be addressed by the end of July at an ecological defense council. Others will be included in a recovery plan that will be submitted to Parliament at the end of the summer. A specific bill will be presented at the end of the summer, and will include all the measures that fall within the legislative field," he explained. "I would like the government to review the situation with you every month," he added.
Another important announcement? "The State will take its full share. From the recovery plan, 15 billion additional euros over two years will be injected into the ecological conversion of our economy," announced Emmanuel Macron.
Finally, the head of state said he was ready for a " referendum in 2021 on one or more texts that include your proposals.
Three proposals of the Citizens' Climate Convention rejected
Three proposals of the Citizens' Convention for Climate were however rejected, starting with the debate on the 110 km/h."We must postpone the debate on the 110 km/h," announced Emmanuel Macron. "I make this proposal as a specialist. I have presented many great plans that have sometimes been summarized in a single measure or a small sentence. It would be deeply unfair for your work to be summarized in this proposal. [...] If we do this, our fellow citizens who are in the most isolated territories will say that it is an urban project. This is not the answer you want to give. The debate must be allowed to mature. I therefore propose to postpone this debate", he justified.
Another rejected proposal? That on the 4% tax on dividends. "I disagree with the 4% tax on dividends that you propose. To put a tax on all investments is to reduce our chance of attracting additional investment. We are already a highly taxed country, increasing it is not the right way," said Emmanuel Macron. But the president promises to " ensure that the transition does not exclude the most modest ".
Finally, Emmanuel Macron also rejected amending the preamble to the Constitution. The Citizens' Climate Convention indeed proposed to include the fight against global warming in the preamble of the Constitution. "You propose to rewrite the preamble of the Constitution by placing the environment above our other fundamental values. As proposed, the wording for the preamble threatens to place environmental protection above our civil liberties. I do not wish to take up this proposal," said Emmanuel Macron. However, the President agrees that Article 1 should be amended.
Four principles, pillars of the project
For the rest of the proposals presented by the 150 members of this Convention, the head of state was keen to return to four main principles. "The first is to place ecology at the heart of the economic model. We must put the ecological ambition at the heart of the production model. We must seek to produce differently, to transform our capacities. It is a profound change of philosophy," he said.
Another important point concerning this time social justice. "The second principle is social justice. Ecological transportation is only possible if it is at the same time a social and solidarity-based transformation," the head of state said. "On this subject, I hope that all your proposals will be taken up: food vouchers to enable the poorest people to buy quality products, increased aid so that the poorest people buy clean vehicles, banning thermal flats...", he added.
Emmanuel Macron continued his speech by mentioning travel on the territory."The third principle is to succeed in the development of our territory. Remove domestic flights when a reasonable train journey is possible. But when it is more than 2.5 hours by train, it is difficult to cut domestic routes."
Finally, the president was keen to emphasize everyone's responsibility. "The state and local authorities must act with the courage to shake up the system. But alone, they can do nothing. I believe very much in all the training and education measures that you propose," said the head of state.
It is recalled that his reaction was very expected while the party Europe Ecology - The Greens won major French cities Sunday evening after the second round of municipal elections, such as Lyon, Bordeaux, Marseille, Strasbourg or Besançon and Poitiers. According to people close toEmmanuel Macron, the " green wave " of Sunday is a " barometer of the state of mind of the French " and shows that " ecology is at the heart of their concerns.
