A “regulatory pause” on environmental legislation: Emmanuel Macron’s “faux pas”
Let’s cut to the chase. Emmanuel Macron was wrong to drop a rhetorical bomb on Thursday, 11 May, when he called for a “regulatory pause” in environmental legislation.
And that was a real shame because shortly after doing so, he said something important that went unnoticed by the analysts: Europe and France risk “being the best performers in terms of regulation, and the worst performers in terms of financing”.
After four years of EU votes and decisions on its Green Deal, Europe can now be regarded as the world’s best-performing political entity in climate regulation. This achievement nevertheless remains insufficient to comply with the Paris Agreement, and several EU negotiations are already underway that must be finalised to provide regulatory visibility and enable public actors – States and local authorities – and private ones – businesses and households – to invest without fear in the transition. However, with a year to go before the EU elections, there will, in fact, be a kind of “regulatory pause”.
Long-term public funding will be needed to support the implementation of these regulations, which aim to radically transform the economy in 25 years and achieve carbon neutrality. And, at the same time, to adapt to changes in the climate that are already underway. Buildings, transport, regional planning, agriculture, industry… we will need to invest in our public infrastructure and provide financial assistance to businesses and households, especially the most vulnerable.
