France: the Court of Auditors denounces a lack of State strategy in the face of climate change
In France, the Court of Auditors is concerned about state finances in its new report published Tuesday March 12.
Responsible for controlling state spending, the body believes that France must “
do more for climate adaptation
”.
In the first time that this theme is addressed in a specific report, the court considers that the current “
responses
” of the State “
have not been articulated
”.
The energy sector is one of the only ones to have been successful by the Court of Auditors.
Here, the Bugey nuclear power plant in Saint-Vulbas, in central France, July 20, 2023 © Olivier Chassignole / AFP
By: RFI with AFP
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The Court of Auditors welcomes “
an awareness
” of the urgency to adapt, but underlines the road that remains to be covered.
“
The message from the Court is that
we must do more for climate adaptation
,” declared the first president of the institution Pierre Moscovici, presenting his annual report to the press.
“
We see a kaleidoscope of responses, of more or less high quality
,” noted the former European Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs.
But they “
are not articulated, hence the imperative to plan
”.
The Court of Auditors above all calls on the State to play more clearly “
its role as strategist
” to better plan and coordinate adaptation.
This role “
consists in particular of setting objectives and defining a trajectory to achieve them
”, regret the magistrates.
An example: municipalities have adopted adaptation strategies but their “
profusion
” needs to be better articulated at the national level.
The Court calls in particular on the authorities to “
correct
” inadequacies in planning, relating to inconsistencies for example
on the adaptation of real estate
or mountain tourism: the policies put in place having been more geared towards reducing emissions than adaptation
This is the first time that this theme of adaptation has been the subject of a specific report from the Court, with nearly 700 pages devoted to it, a sign of the importance it has taken on.
Adaptation has long been overshadowed by the efforts needed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Also readGlobal warming: what will France have to adapt to?
“
The State cannot do everything
,” responds the government
The Minister of Ecological Transition Christophe Béchu reacted on Tuesday by judging that the report's proposals would make it possible to “
inform decisions on the most relevant financing options for adaptation
”.
But “
the State cannot do everything
”
added the minister in an article in the newspaper
Libération
.
“
Adaptation concerns our lifestyles, our daily lives, our vacations and our work, our way of building and eating.
(...) It is therefore also a democratic challenge
,” he declared, announcing the launch “
in a few days
” of a public consultation on the French adaptation strategy.
The Court, however, encourages collecting more data and establishing better risk projections.
The wise men of rue Cambon regret “
the absence of exhaustive and coherent figures for all public actors
”.
She is also concerned, for example, that the European railway standards on which the SNCF is based do not take climate change into account.
The court also calls for a boost in adaptation to coastal erosion “
to move away from the logic of experimentation
”.
A report that arrives “
at a crucial moment
”
The energy sector does not fare so badly in the assessment, having taken into account the impact of global warming.
The Court still requires additional investments to adapt nuclear power plants, dams and the electricity distribution network.
Furthermore, the army is being slapped on the wrist: the court is asking it to make more efforts to decarbonize, even if it recognizes that its missions justify the granting of exemptions.
The Oxfam association welcomed a report which comes “
at a crucial time
”.
The aid funds proposed by the Court constitute “
interesting avenues
” but should “
be supplemented by those responsible for the climate crisis
”, believes the NGO.
Problem: the situation of public finances is “
worrying
”, even “
serious
”, warns the Court, which devotes part of its report to it.
But even in this delicate context, Pierre Moscovici defends spending in favor of the environment: “
It would be paradoxical to go and hit the sector in which we need the most investment
”.
Now
is the time for budgetary savings
.
The deficit will exceed 5% of GDP in 2024, the government recognized, while the European Union recommends imperatively remaining below 3%, pushing the government to announce 10 billion euros in cuts in 2024, then 20 billion in 2025. The Court also calls for clear costing of the adaptation measures, which are necessarily expensive.
The Court of Auditors criticizes the government over its financial forecasts, lacking an “intelligent and subtle approach”
The situation is “
worrying
”, even “
serious
”: the Court of Auditors criticizes the government for its management of public finances, in its annual report published Tuesday March 12.
The body criticizes it for an “ unlikely
” initial scenario
for 2024 and an “
unambitious and fragile
” trajectory for the public deficit.
The French Minister of the Economy Bruno Le Maire announced last month
10 billion euros in additional savings
for this year, on ecology, work, research and solidarity: this will not be enough, says the Court of Audit.
In front of journalists, he affirmed that the magistrates of the Court were “not
austere people who want to cut everything
”, but that it was necessary to have “
an intelligent and subtle approach to public spending
”.
The growth objective for 2024, even revised downwards by the government, is still too optimistic, tackles the report published Tuesday March 12.
France should grow not by 1% as the executive anticipates, but by only 0.7%: this will reduce state revenue and therefore widen the public deficit.
France's trajectory is less good than that of its European neighbors, estimates the court, and the government's objective of falling below 3% by 2027 seems very difficult to achieve.
To achieve this, we would need to make another 50 billion euros in savings by 2027, an unprecedented effort according to the report.
All this while the energy transition and adaptation to climate change will require enormous expenditure, at least several tens of billions of euros per year.
Also readIs global warming accelerating?
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