The movement of "yellow vests" is "the first ecological social revolt"

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According to the economist Eloi Laurent, the movement of "yellow vests" is "the first ecological social revolt". REUTERS

The revolt of "yellow vests" is of ecological origin, because not being able to move because of too expensive fuels is what is called fuel poverty. For Eloi Laurent, economist and co-author of the book Environmental inequalities at the University Press; there is no opposition between ecology and social justice. On the contrary, it is the crux of the transition that our economies must make in the twenty-first century.

RFI: How do you analyze the fact that " yellow vests " consider ecological taxation as a social injustice?

Eloi Laurent: I do not think we can say that ecology is synonymous with social injustice. What is true is that this movement is the first ecological social revolt of contemporary France. I will explain why, but first of all you have to understand why there is a lot of frustration in France about tax consent. It seems unfair and it has nothing to do with the ecological transition, it is the oligarchic transition. It is the Macron government's policy that has consciously lowered taxes for the wealthiest without compensation for the poorest. It is not ecological taxation that is in question, because in France, it is very weak. If we analyze the weight of environmental taxation in tax revenues and in French GDP, we are ranked 27th in the European Union according to Eurostat.

Why do you say it's an ecological social crisis?

Because access to energy as to all of what is called environmental amenities (water, air etc ...) are social issues. This crisis is therefore social and ecological, because it is the fact that access to energy in a country like France has become unfair and anger. If we do not tackle this issue of environmental inequality in the 21st century, social bombs are delayed in French society. Energy poverty is one of them. The Abbé Pierre Foundation has been interested in this issue for a long time. We know that the precarious energy that can not pay the bills of their home is about 8 million people. The other fuel poverty is that related to mobility. Audrey Berry of Cired demonstrates that this is a major issue that can be measured and mitigated. We must simply recognize this ecological social knot. If we do not do it, we will have repeated crises.

This is happening today ?

Yes because we introduced a carbon tax in France softly to avoid the problems that we had in 2009-2010. Remember the "climate-energy contribution" about to be implemented in 2009 was ultimately retorted by the Constitutional Council because there were so many exceptions it created a break in equality before the 'tax. So we have introduced a carbon tax softly into the French tax system without introducing social compensation and it bursts our face. This is the first ecological social revolt and there will be many others. It is time to wake up on this issue and start working seriously to make the ecological transition compatible with social issues. It's perfectly possible.

So how do you explain that some spokespersons for the "yellow vests" movement consider that they are the victims of the ecological transition?

They are the victims. Their incomes oscillate between 800 and 1100 euros monthly [Editor's note: the Smic French is 1,500 € gross] and they are trapped by the cost of energy for their housing, but also for their mobility. They are extremely vulnerable because the price of fossil fuels will increase because of the fight against climate change. This is a major problem and they are absolutely right that if nothing is done to make the ecological transition compatible with social justice, it will be unfair. That's the heart of social ecology. It is to recognize that there are compatibilities. For example, if you do thermal renovation in a dwelling, you reduce greenhouse gas emissions and poverty. It's a double victory. But if you do not make social compensation on a carbon tax, you have an incompatibility. In 2009, we made very precise calculations with social compensation based on income and place of residence to estimate the use of the car. For the poorest 40%, we developed a progressive carbon tax. That is, we redistributed money in the form of an energy check. Those who were to benefit from it are the "yellow vests" of today. It is therefore entirely possible, if we do not take decisions in an emergency and under pressure, but with hindsight and intelligence.

Are there countries that have managed to reconcile ecological transition and social justice?

Yes, look at Sweden. They started this debate in the early 90s. The government has taken the time to explain the benefits of the ecological transition, the fact that commuter mobility due to urban sprawl leads to massive pollution of large cities with disastrous consequences. about health. It is very well documented by the World Health Organization. Today, the tonne of CO2 in Sweden is 120 € and as far as I know, Sweden is a country that is doing quite well economically and socially and achieving its climate goals. In France our approach is absurd which leads to this kind of crisis.

So the "yellow vests" could join Saturday in the walk for the climate that will take place in many cities?

Yes, it would be coherent because there is a profound compatibility between the ecological issue and the social question in the 21st century. This is the crux of the transition. Moreover, a number of them do not seem hostile to ecology. It's an easy caricature to say the people stood up against the ecological transition. It arranges some. We just have to make the ecological transition socially just. We have the means to do it and we have very good academic work. It is really urgent to establish a great deal of consultation that leads to effective public policies.

Eloi Laurent is an economist and co-author of the book "Environmental inequalities" at Presses universitaires. Eloi Laurent