Latest news with #FranceInsoumise
Euronews
3 days ago
- Politics
- Euronews
France's top court strikes down pesticide clause in farming law
France's highest court on Thursday blocked a key part of a contentious farming law that would have brought back a banned pesticide. According to the French Constitutional Court, the measure failed to protect the environment and future generations. The rest of the law - known as the 'Duplomb law,' after the senator who proposed it - was allowed to stand. The bill aimed to loosen rules for farmers and fast-track projects like water storage. It was backed by the government and major farming unions and passed in early July. However, it was met with fierce competition from scientists, health experts and green groups. At the heart of the controversy was acetamiprid, a pesticide banned in France since 2018 for its role in harming bees and other pollinators. Some farmers, especially beet growers, had pushed for its return. A student-led petition against the law drew more than 2 million signatures - one of the biggest in French history. Opponents said that the bill was rushed through parliament with barely any debate, and warned that it put public health and biodiversity at risk. On Thursday, the French court ruled that the proposal previously passed was not strict enough and ignored France's constitutional commitment to environment protection. The ruling is a blow to President Emmanuel Macron's government, which had defended the bill until the end. Left wing politicians were quick to react on social media. Manuel Bompard, coordinator of France Insoumise, said that: "The mobilization must continue until the law is withdrawn and a government, more dangerous than ever for the environment and health, is censored." Ian Brossat, co-chairman of the Communist group on the Paris council, welcomed the "excellent news for public health and the environment" and denounced what he described as an "absurd and dangerous" law. Critics called the decision a win for democracy and the planet. Some lawmakers have already vowed to push for a full repeal in the coming months. Acetamiprid is currently approved by the European Union until 2033, and authorized in other member countries.
Telegraph
18-06-2025
- Automotive
- Telegraph
France scraps mandatory low-emission zones in major cities
France's parliament has dropped a mandatory requirement for towns to have low-emission traffic zones, as part of a Bill 'simplifying' the economy. The Bill, which split MPs loyal to Emmanuel Macron, the French president, came after critics argued that such zones unfairly punish poorer motorists unable to change to less polluting vehicles. Under French laws passed in 2019 and 2021, local authorities whose urban areas exceed regulatory air-quality thresholds must set up low-emission zones (ZFEs). The aim is to cut emissions of fine particles, which the authorities say are responsible for 48,000 deaths a year in France, by excluding certain old or polluting vehicles. Some 24 towns and cities, notably Paris and Lyon, as well as Grenoble and Montpellier, have introduced these to varying degrees. Vehicles that enter such zones must carry 'Crit'Air' stickers proving their low pollution levels. Those who fail to comply risk being hit by a fine of up to €135 (£115). All French cities with more than 150,000 residents were supposed to introduce ZFEs this year. But a group of MPs from the National Rally and the Right – along with a few independents and MPs from Emmanuel Macron's group – tabled a proposal to scrap the zones altogether. Unusually, the hard-Left France Unbowed party also backed ditching ZFEs, although it opposed the Bill overall. However, shortly before Tuesday's debate, ex-prime minister Gabriel Attal, leader of Mr Macron's Ensemble Pour la République group, came out against shelving ZFEs, prompting predictions it would not pass. Still, in a vote on Tuesday evening, a sufficient number of pro-Macron MPs voted in favour of the text, which was adopted by 275 votes to 252, meaning ZFEs will not become compulsory; it will be up to municipalities to impose them if they wish. Greens leader Marine Tondolier said the result was further proof of President Macron's waning influence on domestic affairs, as his camp had sought to preserve ZFEs. 'Neither Emmanuel Macron nor Gabriel Attal has any impact on their camp,' she said. 'They wanted to redeem themselves by preserving the ZFEs, but even that they are incapable of doing.' 'An unacceptable policy of social segregation' Marine Le Pen, the National Rally's parliamentary leader, hailed the vote as 'a victory so long hoped for by millions of French people who are victims of an unacceptable policy of social segregation'. She promised to do 'everything humanly possible' to see it enacted swiftly. However, Agnès Pannier-Runacher, Mr Macron's ecological transition minister, lamented the result. 'Public health and the fight against climate change and pollution should not be variables in political calculations,' she said. The Bill also loosens net-zero rules by allowing local authorities to 'exceed by up to 30 per cent' limits on building on untouched land. The Bill now must go before a joint committee, where seven MPs and seven senators will have to agree on a common version, viewed as more or less a formality. Defenders of ZFE schemes point to studies showing that such zones significantly reduce air pollution and respiratory disease. But many motorists and politicians had warned that rolling them out more widely could cause a public backlash, mainly from less well-off motorists who were unaware of the changes or unable to pay to upgrade or change their vehicles in time. Several European cities have introduced low-emission zones, such as Milan and Stockholm. London has the world's largest pollution-charging scheme, Ulez, which was implemented in the city centre in 2019 before expanding to all of Greater London's nine million residents in 2023. It requires motorists to switch to low-emission vehicles or face a daily charge of £12.50 for driving a more-polluting car within the zone. Its expansion saw fierce opposition from outer London residents, with local councils launching unsuccessful legal challenges and hundreds of Ulez cameras vandalised.
LeMonde
10-06-2025
- Politics
- LeMonde
Boat for Gaza: La France Insoumise rallies support for Rima Hassan
Breaking the Israeli blockade was the goal of the MADLEEN sailboat crew, whose journey was cut short off the coast of the Gaza Strip. The 12 pro-Palestinian activists on board, including Swedish activist Greta Thunberg and MEP Rima Hassan of the left-wing France Insoumise party, were delivering humanitarian aid to Gaza. During the night of June 8 to 9, Israeli naval commandos intercepted the vessel about 31 nautical miles from the Palestinian enclave, redirecting it to the port of Ashdod in southern Israel. During the day, while the 12 activists – six of whom are French – were handed over to Israeli police, the French embassy requested consular access to visit them to ensure their well-being and prepare for their prompt return to France. This marked the second time Hassan had been expelled from Israel: On February 25, she was denied entry upon arrival at Ben-Gurion Airport. While the humanitarian mission failed, the activists' communications campaign proved successful. This was especially true for Hassan, who had been at the forefront of the media battle since the boat departed Italy eight days earlier. At regular intervals, she provided updates on the expedition's progress while warning of alleged threats facing the vessel and its crew. This dramatic narrative received wide attention on social media and was supported by the entire La France Insoumise movement from the first days of the MADLEEN's journey toward Gaza.
Saba Yemen
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Saba Yemen
Mass demonstrations in Paris condemn genocide in Gaza
Paris - Saba: Thousands of French people demonstrated on Sunday in the Place de la République in Paris to condemn the genocide committed by Israel in the Gaza Strip. The demonstrators, who came out in response to a call from the opposition party "France Insoumise" (France Unbowed), civil society organizations supporting the Palestinian cause, and student associations, demanded an end to the Israeli war on Gaza, protection for the Palestinian people, and the imposition of effective and immediate sanctions on Israel. Whatsapp Telegram Email Print more of (International)
Saba Yemen
28-04-2025
- Politics
- Saba Yemen
Suspect in killing worshipper at mosque south France surrenders to Italian police
Paris - Saba: French authorities announced Monday that the suspect in a stabbing at a mosque in France surrendered to Italian police late Sunday night. The public prosecutor in the southeastern French city of Alès said, according to Agence France-Presse, "The suspect in the killing of young Aboubacar Cissé on Friday, April 25, inside a mosque in the Logard region of southeastern France, surrendered himself to Italian police in the city of Pistoia around 11 p.m. Sunday." The public prosecutor said, "It is a great pleasure for me as a prosecutor. Given the effectiveness of the measures put in place, the suspect saw no other option but to surrender, and this was the best step he could have taken." Grini added, "The official information released about the suspect, who filmed the murder himself, was scant. He is a young man named Olivier A., from a Bosnian family, unemployed, and has family connections in the Logard region." "This person remained under the radar of the justice system and the police, and had not attracted any attention before this tragic incident," Abdelkrim Gueni continued. A white march took place in the town of La Grande-Combe on Sunday in memory of the victim, Aboubacar Cissé, a young Malian man in his twenties. More than a thousand people participated between the Khadija Mosque, where the incident occurred, and the town hall of this small town of 5,000 people north of Alès. Hundreds of people also gathered late in the evening in Paris, including Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader of the France Insoumise movement, who accused Interior Minister Bruno Retaylor of fostering a "climate of Islamophobia." President Emmanuel Macron stressed that "discrimination and hatred based on religion will never have a place in France," offering "the nation's support" to the victim's family and "our Muslim compatriots." Whatsapp Telegram Email Print more of (International)
