Greenpeace does not trust Emmanuel Macron and “will judge on actions and on concrete evidence”explained on Monday April 25 on franceinfo Jean-François Julliard, director general of the NGO Greenpeace, while Emmanuel Macron declared that he wanted to make France a great ecological nation.
franceinfo: Do you trust Emmanuel Macron?
Jean-Francois Julliard : No. We will judge on actions and on concrete evidence. He has been saying for five years that he will make France a great environmental nation. Five years ago, he said that he was going to make France the country of environmental excellence, that he was going to be the great defender of the Paris climate agreement. We saw what happened. We were disappointed, sometimes betrayed, on promises that were not kept. Today, the level of trust is extremely low.
Would you have blamed him if he hadn’t spoken about it when he was re-elected?
Sure. This is why I say that we are waiting for proofs and that we will judge on actions. We have heard his call to appoint a Prime Minister in charge of ecological planning. In itself, this is potentially a good idea, but we are waiting to see what he will do with it, the role of this Prime Minister, the composition of his government, the nature of the roadmap and above all, if Emmanuel Macron is prepared to do what it has not done so far to further reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
What do you expect from this new mandate?
There are a whole host of projects and sectors in which action must be taken. We must transform the agricultural model, get out of our dependence on fossil fuels and the individual car. We really have to work on the thermal renovation of buildings because Emmanuel Macron manipulates the figures, but the reality is that the energy sieves are still just as numerous. So we are waiting to see how he is ready to profoundly question our model of society, including the way in which we practice economic exchanges. Is it capable of fighting against overproduction, overconsumption? These are essential elements if we want to talk about ecological transition. It must give a clear course, with strong ambitions and above all the means to achieve them that are up to the task. Until then he has often blown hot and cold on many subjects. Now he must have very precise roadmaps to get France out of the climate illegality for which it was condemned.
Why are you calling for demonstrations on May Day?
We have started this work with trade unions and associations to ensure that we can jointly take measures that are good for reducing social inequalities and strengthening environmental protection. By participating in these marches, these rallies on May 1, we are sending a very strong signal by saying that we are not going to sit idly by and wait for things to happen.