Beyond the emergency, a recovery plan to prepare France for 2030 - France 24

Paris (AFP)

With its recovery plan of 100 billion euros over two years, which it must present on Thursday, the government intends to prepare France for 2030 and go beyond the only rebound of the economy hard hit by the crisis.

"This plan is not satisfied to heal the wounds of the crisis. It prepares the future", affirmed the Prime Minister Jean Castex in an interview Wednesday evening at Le Figaro, by defending a plan "at the height of the exceptional situation that we cross".

In total, 100 billion euros over two years will be injected into the economy while GDP is expected to contract by 11% this year.

The government's objective is to return to the pre-crisis activity level in 2022 and to start seeing unemployment drop, when it expects 800,000 job cuts this year.

The plan should make it possible to create 200,000 jobs between the end of 2020 and the end of 2021, promises Matignon, and Jean Castex called on companies to make a strong commitment to employment.

For this, the executive promises an execution without loss of time, within two years of the presidential election, with a steering committee, chaired by the Prime Minister, to verify the allocation of funds and redistribute them if certain projects are falling behind.

After the 460 billion euros in emergency support mobilized since the beginning of the crisis, the recovery plan is therefore a medium-term investment plan, around three priorities: ecological transition, business competitiveness and social cohesion, defends Matignon.

Thirty billion euros will thus be devoted to greening the economy, an "unprecedented acceleration", welcomes the government, when NGOs denounce the absence of firm conditions for aid paid to companies.

Transport will benefit in particular from 11 billion euros, including 4.7 billion for the SNCF to finance rail freight, small lines and night trains.

Nearly 7 billion euros will also be allocated to the energy renovation of buildings, a sea snake of ecological policies, including 4 billion for the public park (schools, universities, etc.) and 2 billion dedicated to households.

To reindustrialize the territories, the plan focuses on improving the competitiveness of companies, with 35 billion euros mobilized, including 20 billion to lower production taxes paid by companies, despite the protests of the communities which are the main ones. beneficiaries.

The rest of the envelope will support the equity of companies that have been damaged by the crisis, or will subsidize the relocation of activities and innovation in sectors of the future, such as artificial intelligence or quantum computing.

- Regain confidence -

Faced with this debauchery of resources for businesses, the government wants to show that it has not forgotten low-income households and all those threatened with losing or not finding a job.

The challenge is to create a climate of trust, we say to Matignon.

Especially since the government has ruled out any measure to stimulate consumption, household incomes having been preserved by partial unemployment, even if the latter currently prefer to save in the face of health and economic uncertainties.

Thus, 35 billion euros are dedicated to social and territorial cohesion, including in particular 15 billion measures in favor of employment, including 6.7 billion already announced this summer for young people or 6.6 billion for the system. partial activity of long duration.

Added to this are the 6 billion euros of investment in the hospital, or the revaluation of the back-to-school allowance and aid to communities.

On the whole plan, 80 billion will weigh directly on the State budget and will increase in the short term the public debt, already expected at nearly 121% of GDP this year.

However, half will be financed by subsidies from the European recovery plan, and with the exception of the reduction in production taxes, the expenses incurred will not be sustainable, we caution the government, even if we assume this strategy spendthrift.

"Doing nothing today would have condemned us to recession. And we know the disastrous consequences of austerity," Jean Castex defended Wednesday evening in Le Figaro, confirming the absence of a tax hike.

© 2020 AFP