- For an hour, the new Prime Minister described his course and gave details, notably on the economic recovery plan.
- Its first ambition is to "reweave" the country through "dialogue" and "territories".
For an hour, he declined his roadmap for the coming months. The brand new Prime Minister Jean Castex delivered this Wednesday afternoon his general policy speech to the National Assembly. About 600 days from the end of Emmanuel Macron's mandate, he described his course and gave details the day after the July 14 interview given by the President of the Republic. While waiting for the vote of confidence scheduled for the evening, here is what to remember.
"Resuscitate the country" thanks to "dialogue" and "territories"
After having evaded in one sentence the question of wearing a mask that will have to be "developed", Prime Minister Jean Castex delivered his vision of the consequences of the crisis on the country. Describing “difficulties” and “failures” highlighted, Jean Castex detailed his first ambition: that of “reweaving these Frances so different”. "That of the suburbs, rural France, so-called peripheral France, (...) the one who does not have the right to speak, who says nothing but who does not think less ...", detailed Jean Castex.
To do this, the Prime Minister relies on "social dialogue" and "territories", two words which are dear to him and on which he was eagerly awaited. From Friday, it will bring together the social partners to develop "a timetable and a method" for the various subjects, starting with the recovery plan. A report will be presented every two months, he promises. He also spoke of “a new stage in decentralization” in order to “rearm” local authorities and to be able to support them. "Our intention is to make the territorial organization of the state more coherent and efficient," he announced.
The fight against unemployment, "top priority"
Already mentioned by Emmanuel Macron during his interview of July 14, the measures for the use of the recovery plan (100 billion euros) were recalled and a little fleshed out. Jean Castex, who has placed the fight against unemployment as an "absolute priority" hopes to promote the employment of young people with the help of an "exceptional device" to reduce the cost of work: 4,000 euros per year for the hiring of 'a young person under 25 up to 1.6 times the minimum wage' in all companies and for a period of at least one year '.
The recovery plan which will be launched in September will also contain the opening of 200,000 places in qualifying training for young people. The partial unemployment scheme, which has already cost 30 billion euros, will be funded to the tune of 8 billion in 2021. "The crisis has brought new confirmation that we must transform our productive apparatus," said the Prime Minister, who has promised 40 billion euros for industry. Measures of this plan will be applied “locally”, by “employment pool”.
The fight for ecology
Expected on concrete announcements, Jean Castex delivered a certain number. On the social side, for example, meals at university restaurants will be 1 euro for scholarship students, the back-to-school allowance will be increased by 100 euros, while "no French tax effort will be asked".
But it is especially on the ecological level (but "not for a green decrease") that the government wants to accelerate: this Wednesday, Castex for example announced a "moratorium for the installation of new shopping center projects in peripheral areas "Or a" very ambitious cycling plan "contracted with local authorities, which will also have to innovate in terms of waste sorting, renewable energies ..." By the end of 2021, all territories will have ecological development contracts with plans for 'concrete actions'. The calendar of urban renovations, planned in 450 neighborhoods, will be accelerated. The recovery plan will devote "more than 20 billion euros" to the thermal renovation of buildings, the reduction of polluting emissions, the production of "more local and sustainable" food, and the support of "green technologies" like batteries.
Other files to settle
At the top of the pile, pension reform will not be put under the carpet. Prime Minister's objective: that consultation resume in order to improve the "content and readability of the reform". In front of the parliamentarians, he also undertook to continue "the overhaul of the school of the Republic", the fight for "secularism" and "gender equality". "Fighting against the radical Islamist remains one of our major concerns," he said.He announced "a bill against separatism", which will be presented to the Council of Ministers at the start of the school year in order to "prevent certain groups from closing around ethnic or religious affiliations". To stem "petty crime that spoils people's lives", Jean Castex announced that he wanted to create "local judges specially assigned to daily incivility".
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- Emmanuel Macron
- Government
- Recovery plan
- Prime Minister
- Jean Castex