France's climate change commitments push up diesel prices and street protests

PARIS – The French president is again under fire, this time because of rising fuel prices.

On Saturday, more than 100,000 protesters dressed in yellow jackets not only took to the streets, but they tried, literally, to take the streets, according to the French Ministry of the Interior. According to the ministry, a network of drivers has blocked roads on some 2,000 sites across the country, causing congestion over several kilometers and causing at least one death.

A protester was killed when a driver caught in a traffic jam accelerated in eastern Savoy, reported the Associated Press. Forty-seven others were reportedly injured in separate incidents nationwide.

The protesters' complaint: the rising price of diesel fuel, which they consider the latest insult of the "president of the rich". But the recent price hike is a direct result of Emmanuel Macron's commitment to fighting climate change, which included higher carbon emissions. taxes for 2018, the first full year of his term.

Diesel, a fossil fuel, is known for pollutants that it emits into the air. Although it is traditionally taxed at the same rate as gasoline, this is no longer the case: diesel taxes rose by 6.2% per liter this year, as part of the government's efforts to protect the environment. 'fresh air. The problem is that diesel remains the most common fuel in France, which leads many to consider recent policies as an attack against the workers rather than as a protection of the environment.

The hustle and bustle of Saturday's "yellow vest" campaign began this summer with several online petitions calling on Macron to reconsider its decision. But the strongest voice was that of Jacline Mouraud, white-haired hypnotist and Breton grandmother of three children, who became the star of the movement.

"I have two short words for Mr. Macron and his government," she said in a YouTube video that garnered millions of views. "You have persecuted the drivers since the day you took office. Will this continue for how long?

This is not a marginal opinion. According to a survey published Friday by the Odoxa agency for the French newspaper Le Figaro – although it has only 1,000 people – three in four French people agree. Anyway, Macron's political opponents, especially the French political extremists, sought to capitalize on sentiment, using the "yellow jacket" movement to portray the president as an impenetrable elitist.

This is a common criticism of Macron, whose approval ratings have recently dropped to 26%. Even President Trump has taken note, noting the low popularity of Macron after tweets after a tense visit to Paris last weekend.

[In a morning tweetstorm, Trump takes repeated aim at France’s Macron]

Laurent Wauquiez, the radical leader of the French right Les Republicains, announced that he would demonstrate Saturday. "We are being offered a punitive environmental policy that involves massive tax increases," said Wauquiez in a recent interview. "I'm fed up with the fact that in this country, environmental policy always goes through taxes."

In response, Macron offered his "respect and consideration" to the protesters, but refused to yield. It is also far from the only one to advocate higher carbon taxes.

The United Nations argues that taxation of carbon dioxide emissions is a critical element in staving off a steady rise in global temperatures. This was a key element of the October report by the world organization that the Earth's atmosphere could heat up to 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit from pre-industrial levels by 2040, potentially triggering a global crisis. decades earlier than expected.

Every year, around 48,000 people die in France from pollution-related causes, according to the French public health monitoring body.

Since being elected, Macron has sought to position itself as one of the leading players in climate change action – in stark contrast to Trump. When the latter withdrew the United States from the historic Paris agreement on climate, signed in 2015, Macron invited US climatologists to continue their research in France. In English, he even played on the slogan of the Trump campaign: "Make Our Planet Great Again".

Despite these public interventions, however, the French president has been criticized at home for not having made much progress on the climate issue. Criticism came even from his own cabinet: Nicolas Hulot, former television host and Minister of Environment Macron, won his resignation in a radio interview held in August that took the Elysee by surprise.

As Hulot stated during the interview: "Have we started to reduce the use of pesticides? The answer is no. Have we started to reduce greenhouse gas emissions? The answer is no. Or to stop the erosion of biodiversity? No."

[France’s Macron reshuffles his cabinet in effort to quell political instability]

Nevertheless, carbon taxes have been a priority for Macron since the beginning, and France has increased its carbon tax from $ 35 per tonne in 2017 to $ 51 per tonne in 2018. The cost is expected to continue to rise to 98, $ 50 per ton in 2022.

In recent weeks, the government has recognized the impact on the average French portfolio. But since the beginning of 2018, consumers are entitled to an "environmental bonus": exchange a diesel car for a more environmentally friendly model and recover money.

Although the government is sticking to its policy, Macron, in a rare concession, seems to recognize the blow to its image that represent Saturday's protests.

As he said in a recent interview: "I have not managed to reconcile the French with their leaders."

Quentin Ariès contributed to this report.

Read more:

Frenchman Macron takes the lead in the battle for climate change, the United States being absent

Promising to "restore splendor to our planet", Macron attracts 13 US climate scientists

Today's coverage of Swiss Post correspondents around the world

Love Washington Post World on Facebook and stay up to date on foreign news