The exercise is never very pleasant, but Bruno Le Maire had to comply. In an interview with Parisian published this Wednesday October 27, but extracts from which were revealed Tuesday evening, the Minister of the Economy said he was open to a postponement of the ban on the rental of thermal strainers. This measure, which is due to come into force on January 1, 2025, only concerns housing classified “G” by the energy performance diagnosis (DPE), a scale taking into account several characteristics of the building, such as the quality of insulation, the type of windows and the heating method.
To justify his position, Bruno Le Maire cites the situation of the real estate market, which is slowing down. New housing construction remains weak and interest rates have more than tripled in less than two years to combat inflation, from 1.06% in December 2021 to 3.63% in August 2023. “I consider that everything that was decided before the rate hike [d’intérêt] deserves to be looked at again in the light of this crisis. What was possible when money was available becomes impossible with rates this high, he explained. We have to be very pragmatic and see if we can shift the calendars.”
Criticized even in the majority
“On a personal basis,” he adds, cautiously. An insufficient precaution for several elected representatives of the majority, who publicly disavowed the tenant of Bercy. “And we very unfavorable”, reframes the deputy (and former advisor to the Elysée) Pierre Cazeneuve, who sits on the Sustainable Development Commission. “The building accounts for 45% of energy consumption and nearly 30% of GHG emissions [gaz à effet de serre]. Let’s not postpone our goals, let’s accelerate!” Same reaction from the President of the National Assembly, Yaël Braun-Pivet : “We must not return to Saint-Glinglin. It is a trajectory that we have taken, which is important and we must not give up,” she replied on France 2.
A flight of green wood that bore fruit. Presenting the 2024 budget to the press this morning, Bruno Le Maire casually returns to his comments. “It is not a question of changing the calendar as it has been determined, it is simply a question of thinking about how we can be simpler and clearer for our compatriots.” The deadlines provided for by the “Climate and resilience” law, promulgated in 2021, will therefore not change. The rental of “G +” housing has already been prohibited since the start of the year and that of “F” housing will be in 2028. While Emmanuel Macron presented his ecological planning plan on Monday and wants to make fight against thermal sieves one of the major projects of his five-year term, the quack of Bruno Le Maire exposes divergences within the government which the executive would have done well without.