Emmanuel Macron’s Élysée press conference on Tuesday evening may have lasted two and a quarter hours, but not all the subjects could be addressed by the President of the Republic. 20 minutes make a list of what was missing.
Ecological transition
If Emmanuel Macron did talk about his concept of “French ecology”, the subject was largely absent, apart from the energy question, with nuclear power, in the introductory remarks. We had to wait for a question from the online media Reporterre, more theoretical, and one from The voice of the North, more practical on the aftermath of the floods in Pas-de-Calais, so that the subject is truly addressed. “I believe in the direction, in clear measures, and in their implementation. » Implied: all measurements are programmed. Now, it’s a matter of putting it into practice, and waiting for it to actually translate.
Better: it’s already bearing fruit for President Macron. He repeated that during his first five-year term, France had doubled the rate of its reductions in greenhouse gas emissions… as usual, without recalling that this level was achieved largely thanks to the various confinements linked to to the Covid-19 pandemic. He nevertheless assures that according to the High Council for the Climate, the first figures of the second term are close to the right trajectory (i.e. 5% reduction per year).
Purchasing power, yes but how?
Purchasing power, another major priority for the French in these times of inflation, was on the agenda of the press conference, and even its introductory part. For the president, this is nothing new, work must pay better, in particular so that “activity is always more attractive than inactivity”. It was on the how that the president was less forthcoming, and quickly questioned by the journalists in the room.
“We have done a lot! », said the president, recalling the end of the housing tax, the activity bonus and the 20% increase in the minimum wage in recent years. But for the future, Emmanuel Macron mainly referred to “salary dynamics” to be found in branch negotiations, particularly those which have minimums below the minimum wage. This was repeated like a mantra during this press conference on all subjects: above all, no constraints on businesses. Finally, even the 2 billion tax cuts, which represent a very limited reduction per tax household, should not mark a strong increase in purchasing power. Knowing, moreover, that only the richest 50% of French people pay income tax.
European elections and the European Union
Less than six months before the European elections, Europe, or even the upcoming campaign, was absent from the opening remarks. The president still took advantage of a question from BFMTV on the progress of the National Rally, and on his responsibility in it, to deal a few blows to the far-right party. This can be considered as a first stone in the campaign of Renaissance and its allies in view of the June 9 election. “The RN is the party of impoverishment,” said Emmanuel Macron, in attacks purely on the credibility of the economic project of Marine Le Pen’s party.
It is at the conclusion of this response that the tenant of the Elysée outlined some European axes: “But rest assured, the Europe of the National Rally is not the one which will allow you to have vaccines. […] We were able to create a recovery plan because there was Europe. Today we can weigh in against China and the United States of America because there is Europe. Because there is a Europe that carries our values. […] This is the opposite of what the National Rally is about. »
Accommodation
Everyone recognizes it, in the oppositions and within the majority, it is THE subject of the moment: the housing crisis. “It’s the thing that’s coming to us from everywhere now, but for a long time we didn’t see the water rising,” recognizes a Macronist MP. This is undoubtedly the most surprising absence in the speech made by the president to begin his press conference. Obviously, Gabriel Attal will not be able to miss the file in his general policy declaration, which he must make a priori on January 30.