“We have not sufficiently identified the impact” of Europe “on the future of environmental policies”, regrets Réseau Action Climat

The network of associations scrutinized the programs of the candidates for the European elections on June 9 in terms of the environment and distributed good marks to the left and bad marks to the right.

“We have not sufficiently identified in France that the European level has as much impact on the future of climate and environmental policies”, regrets Tuesday May 28 on France Inter Caroline François-Marsal, Europe manager of Réseau Action Climat. While the European elections are to be held on June 9, this collective of associations judges “amazing” that “the climate does not take up more space in the electoral debate” while “80% of French environmental legislation comes from European law”.

His Europe manager observes “a tendency to narrow the debate between the RN and Renaissance”two parties which, according to her, “do not necessarily make climate and the environment a priority in their program, although this is the case for” the PS-Place publique, LFI and Les Écologues.

Two weeks before the European elections, the Climate Action Network has therefore deciphered the programs of the lists of the PS-Place publique, the Ecologists, La France insoumise, the PCF, Renaissance, the Republicans, Reconquête and the National Rally. This collective of associations has classified these lists according to their proposals on “energy independence, less polluting and accessible transport, sustainable food and agriculture, support for households and jobs in the face of ecological transition, the transformation of our consumption and production, nature and health, financing the ecological transition, democracy and transparency.

The RN and Reconquête obtain the lowest marks with proposals judged by the majority “harmful” in these areas. The Republicans and Renaissance have “ineffective proposals” and the PCF of “incomplete proposals”, according to the collective. Climate Action Network finally ensures that the PS, LFI, Les Écologists show themselves to be good students with judged proposals “effective”. Generally speaking, Caroline François-Marsal finds in the programs of these parties the “voting trends observed during the past mandate”. The Europe manager of this network of associations notes a certain “consistency” For “the driving parties of ambition”, namely the parties of the left and finds on the side of the extreme right a “constant opposition to any environmental ambition”.

In detail, Caroline François-Marsal observes that Reconquest and the National Rally “frontally attack environmental achievements” negotiated during the previous European mandate. She accuses these far-right parties of wanting “abolish the entire Green Deal” by targeting, for example, “the end of the sale of new thermal vehicles by 2035” or wanting “relax the directive which accelerates the thermal renovation of buildings”.

The Europe manager of Réseau Action Climat also judges “amazing” that the Republicans “support climate neutrality for 2050” but do not “are not really giving themselves the means to achieve this objective”. Caroline François-Marsal even considers that the right is proposing “setbacks, particularly at the end of sales of new thermal vehicles”. Yet, “under this mandate, they were able to support texts, such as the directive on energy efficiency”, she wonders. The collective’s Europe manager is also surprised by the proposals of the presidential majority. “We would have expected greater ambition on the environment, because they were able to defend key texts under this mandate, such as the law on the restoration of nature, [mais] in their program, there is no mention of this issue at all”, she regrets.

Caroline François-Marsal, on the other hand, welcomes the proposals from the left, evoking, for example, “the substantial amounts” promised by the Ecologists “to finance the protection and preservation of biodiversity”. “We also find social justice measures to deploy the ecological transition, which is one of the conditions for its success,” rejoices the Europe manager of Réseau Action Climat, who cites “the establishment of a climate and social wealth tax proposed by the three lists” PS-Place publique, LFI and Les Écologues.