INTERVIEW
In a column published Saturday by the Journal du Dimanche , personalities from the world of cooking call on Emmanuel Macron to come to the aid of small and medium-sized businesses affected by the epidemic of covid-19. If the President has already announced a number of measures to carry charges, the signatories urge him to issue a decree of "natural health disaster" so that insurance companies participate in the "war effort". Cook Yves Camdeborde, who is among the signatories, was the guest of Patrick Cohen on Sunday on Europe 1.
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"Recognize this natural health disaster"
"Insurance has a role to play. For its part, it is completely covered, because no one is insured for this kind of event," explains Yves Camdeborde. The chef of the restaurant "Le Comptoir" in Paris is worried about the idea of many companies going out of business. "We are asking the French state to recognize this natural health catastrophe so that insurance can also be part of the dance."
"Would it be fair that French insurance (220 billion euros in turnover in 2018) and their reinsurance (234 billion euros in turnover that same year) are the only ones not to show solidarity?", can we read in the text of the signatories.
"Colossal effort"
Measures have already been announced by Emmanuel Macron to help SMEs threatened by the epidemic. This "colossal effort" of the government, which Yves Camdeborde readily acknowledges, risks however to be insufficient: "We will also assume the salary of our employees even if a part will be reimbursed to us ... It is still necessary to have sufficient working capital . " In addition, according to the chief, the businesses had a difficult start to the year, marked by strikes and social movements.