It was his first big meeting of the season. Elisabeth Borne spoke this Monday, August 29 in the afternoon at the summer university of Medef, the first employers’ union, at the Longchamp racecourse near Paris. The Prime Minister called on companies to make efforts to avoid energy shortages in the coming months.
The word threw a chill in the spans of the very chic Parisian racecourse. Ration gas or electricity in the coming months, it is no longer taboo for the government by Elisabeth Borne. ” If we were to get to rationing, businesses would be hit first »
So to avoid this black scenario, the Prime Minister calls on companies to speed up, reports Julien Chavanne from the political service of RFI. They will have to present an energy sobriety plan next month before an audit in October. Since June, the French government has been repeating its objective of reducing energy consumption in France by 10% by 2024.
The leader of Medef, Geoffroy Roux de Bezieux, says he is ready to play the game, under certain conditions. “Companies will do their part, but let’s avoid symbolic, media measures that point to each other in this transition “.
“There are no superprofits on the side of the state »
The controversies over private jets or the watering of golf courses have not gone down well with the bosses. Not to mention the threat of a tax on superprofits agitated by Elisabeth Borne which gave rise to an acid exchange on the platform. ” Finally, the superprofits are finally on the side of the State by the phenomenon of the tax that those of the companies “. Elisabeth Borne replied dryly: “ No, Mr. President, there are no superprofits on the side of the State “, highlighting the expenses incurred to protect the purchasing power of the French.
If this weekend, Elisabeth Borne had declared that she ” not (closed) not the door » to the idea of taxing « super profits “Companies, she did not expand on the subject on Monday. In an interview at Parisianthe Prime Minister had nevertheless encouraged them to lower prices or give purchasing power to their employees by making full use, for example, of the tripling of the tax-free bonuses (known as “Macron bonuses”) that they can pay to their employees.
My messages to @Elisabeth_Borne : energy sobriety, budgetary sobriety and maintaining the course of the supply policy, it works the employment rate is at its highest since 1975.#LaREF22
— Geoffroy Roux de Bézieux (@GeoffroyRDB) August 29, 2022
Putting pressure on businesses
On the issue of energy, the government is therefore seeking to put pressure on companies without reaching the breaking point. Matignon was planning on Sunday evening August 28 to ask companies to reduce energy consumption by 10% in a few weeks. An idea finally put aside, at least for now.
Elisabeth Borne had also announced the release of a “green fund” endowed with 1.5 billion euros intended for local authorities to ” help them in accelerating their ecological transition and promised that the executive would cushion “ increases » in energy prices after the end of the tariff shield in December, thanks to « specific provisions ” for the “ more fragile “.
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