Environment. Setbacks, lack of clarity...: the High Council for Climate's warning shot to France

At a time when the pace of decarbonization in France is slowing and certain measures, such as building renovations, are being rolled back, the High Council for Climate (HCC) issued a scathing warning to French leaders this Thursday, led by Emmanuel Macron and François Bayrou .

"We need a collective surge to relaunch climate action, with a clear public policy framework, structural actions, solid governance, and well-defined targets," Jean-François Soussana, the agronomist who chairs the HCC, told reporters. This independent body, established in 2018 by President Emmanuel Macron, is composed of twelve experts tasked with assessing the government's climate action and issuing recommendations.

In March, he warned that France was "not yet ready" for global warming, which has already reached +2.2°C in the country between 2015 and 2024. This observation is still relevant as the country gradually emerges from a long, intense and premature heatwave . " This type of heatwave illustrates the fact that in certain cases we can reach the limits of adaptation with significant impacts, for example on health," emphasizes Jean-François Soussana. The measures contained in the government's adaptation plan "are still out of step with vulnerabilities and needs," regrets the HCC.

In its annual report entitled "Relaunching Climate Action in the Face of Worsening Impacts and Weakening Management," it points out that the rate of decline in greenhouse gas emissions slowed significantly in 2024 (-1.8%). The decline remained strong for energy production, but stalled in other sectors (agriculture, buildings, industry, transport, etc.). However, the rate will need to double to achieve France's 2030 targets.

Experts even point out that a large part (70%) of this reduction can be attributed to "conjunctural" factors, such as mild winter weather or the restart of nuclear reactors. "Farmers have a difficult life and earn a poor living, and so more and more farms are shutting down. So this is what we call a conjunctural [effect], because it is not a deliberate political phenomenon," gives as an example Marion Guillou, member of the HCC and food specialist.

The HCC also regrets "setbacks" that have "often affected measures that have been very popular with individuals": social leasing (renting electric vehicles to low-income households), support for rooftop solar panels, or building renovations. "The clarity of France's climate policy has been called into question by these setbacks, creating a lack of visibility for the private sector and local authorities," the report states.

MaPrimeRénov', state aid for the energy renovation of homes, is currently suspended for new major renovation projects until mid-September. President Macron himself expressed his dissatisfaction, criticizing the "uncertainties" surrounding certain measures. The HCC also cites the setbacks recorded in Parliament regarding ZAN or ZFE.

The experts also reiterate their criticism of the delays in publishing certain key energy and climate texts and deplore the "weakening" of the General Secretariat for Ecological Planning, an organization attached to the Prime Minister's office. Internationally, they also suggest "relaunching France's climate diplomacy."

The European Commission submitted its target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 90% by 2040 compared to 1990 levels to member states on Wednesday, with "flexibilities." No vote will take place before September, making the timeline very tight before the UN climate conference (COP30) in Brazil in November. The EU must unveil its climate roadmap to 2035 before this major event. "This delay weakens the EU's position in the context of COP30 and contributes to the relaxation of international pressure to raise climate ambition," the authors lament.