135 French MPs lobby hard for the ecological transition

(EurActiv, 17 Oct 2018) A parliamentary group, bringing together 135 French MPs from across the political spectrum wants to collectively carry the issues of the ecological transition, particularly during the debate on the 2019 finance bill. EURACTIV France’s media partner the Journal de l’environnement reports.

“We need to make politics ecological rather than politicising ecology,” said Sophie Auconie, the centrist UDI MP for Indre-et-Loire.

Convinced that the ecological transition can no longer wait, the MPs belonging to six political groups (only the far-left La France Insoumise declined the offer) have decided to establish a group “to have a better chance of putting through amendments than if everybody remained in their own corner,” explained Jennifer de Temmerman, an MP for La République En Marche (LREM) in the Nord electoral district.

The finance bill (PLF) represents a golden opportunity to test the political power of the transpartisan group, which is dedicated to the ecological transition and its funding. The group is the first of its kind in France.

Hydrogen and sustainable mobility

Common ground has been found with respect to hydrogen. “We will ensure that PLF 2019 provides the €100 million announced as part of the hydrogen plan,” said Mathieu Orphelin.

The LREM MP for Maine-et-Loire, who mentioned that “the genesis of this collective was connected to Nicolas Hulot’s departure,” is also expecting “significant progress to combat the artificialisation of the soil, to promote alternatives to cars and to replace old heavy goods vehicles and vans.”

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EurActiv, 17 Oct 2018: 135 French MPs lobby hard for the ecological transition