Michel Barnier was Minister of the Environment from 1993 to 1995 and Minister of Agriculture from 2007 to 2009. When his arrival in Matignon was announced, environmental NGOs called for emergency measures. Several texts remain pending, such as the national plan for adaptation to climate change.
In a press release, Future Generations calls for a “change of direction” and believes that the next government “We must turn the page on the mistakes of the Attal government, marked by a weakening of environmental commitments”.
In a press release, Véronique Andrieux, general director of WWF France, regrets that “since the dissolution of the National Assembly” and despite the urgency to act against climate change and biodiversity loss, “ecology has[it] was the great absentee” debates.
“Urgently, a first good decision would be to cancel the cuts in credits to the green fund and Ademe, discovered in the latest budget documents of the resigned government”estimates Sébastien Treyer, executive director of the Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations (IDDRI).
and for the others “priority projects”Benoît Leguet, director of the Institute for Climate Economics (I4CE), believes that it will also be necessary to include “the construction and presentation of a finance bill compatible with the search for ecological planning” AND “the development and presentation to Parliament of a multiannual strategy to finance the ecological transition”.
Greenpeace salutes Mr. Barnier “a sincere interest (…) for environmental issues and a concrete assessment on these issues [comme la loi Barnier, qui inscrit le principe du pollueur payeur dans la loi (…) mise en place du fonds d’aides aux collectivités pour faire face aux catastrophes naturelles] ».
Future Generations recalls that as Minister of Agriculture (2007-2009) “was able to withstand pressure, in particular from FNSEA, during the Grenelle negotiations” dedicated, among other things, to pesticides, paving the way for NGOs in the debates. The majority union alliance FNSEA-Young Farmers (JA) called on Michel Barnier on Thursday to “place agriculture among the immediate priorities of his government”while the Peasant Confederation demanded an effort in terms of farmers’ income.
“I think he had courage, authority and a sense of the general interest”note to Agence France-Presse Allain Bougrain-Dubourg, president of the League for the Protection of Birds (LPO).
However, several experts have expressed doubts about his willingness to act. “With Michel Barnier as Prime Minister, there is little hope of putting social and environmental justice at the top of the political agenda”judges Jean-François Julliard, general director of Greenpeace France.
“Michel Barnier has not distinguished himself in recent years as a fervent defender of ecology and it is to be feared that he will not make the ecological transition a priority”estimates Morgane Créach, director of the Climate Action Network.
