Environment. Duplomb Law: Macron calls for reconciling "science" and "fair competition"

Emmanuel Macron said Wednesday that he would wait for the Constitutional Council's decision on the Duplomb law before commenting on the petition calling for its repeal, while calling for a reconciliation of "science" and "fair competition" in environmental matters, a government spokesperson reported.

During the Council of Ministers, the Head of State confirmed that he wanted to "respect institutional time" and that he would therefore "await the conclusions of the Constitutional Council," which is due to rule by August 10, Sophie Primas told the press.

"He recalled that our political action, whatever it may be, including on these agricultural issues, must be guided by science and that we must at the same time defend our farmers" to ensure "fair competition," she added.

"Anything that puts us out of sync" with the rules in force in other countries "penalizes us," Emmanuel Macron said, according to her. "He is very attentive to this ridge path," the spokesperson assured.

Nearly 1.8 million citizens, a record number, have signed a petition on the National Assembly's website against the Duplomb Law, which has been widely criticized for its environmental impact. This could lead to a debate, without a vote, on this law, which has already been adopted by Parliament.

But several left-wing parties and environmental associations are asking the President of the Republic to demand a "new deliberation" of the text in Parliament , as authorized by the Constitution.

The law of Les Républicains senator Laurent Duplomb , adopted on July 8, notably authorizes the conditional reintroduction of acetamiprid , a pesticide banned in France but authorized elsewhere in Europe.

This product, toxic to biodiversity and potentially to human health, is in demand by beet and hazelnut producers, who believe they have no alternative to combat the pests and are subject to unfair competition from foreign producers.