Duplomb bill veto leads to FNSEA protest withdrawal, sparking protests from environmentalists and farmers' associations as a "democratic uproar" ensues.
French farmers from Yvelines county and approximately a hundred associates staged a demonstration on Monday, May 26, led by the National Federation of Agricultural Syndicates (FNSEA) and Young Farmers, outside the French National Assembly. The exhibition, which included less than ten tractors, aimed to persuade lawmakers regarding a bill intended to ease constraints within the farming profession.
Minister of Agriculture Annie Genevard, accompanied by Minister of the Interior Bruno Retailleau, met with the small syndicate group prior to entering the Hemicycle at 16:00. Genevard publicly supported the motion to reject the bill put forward by her own rapporteur, Julien Dive (Aisne, The Republicans), during the National Assembly session. This atypical strategy aimed to bypass a public debate and directly route the text to the mixed parliamentary committee. The motion was ultimately approved by a majority, ranging from the center to the far right.
Despite planning a tractor relay until Wednesday to protest at the Palais-Bourbon, Hervé Lapie, the FNSEA general secretary, announced that the demonstration would be lifted. He highlighted the successful vote of the motion of rejection, a victory for the FNSEA compared to the obstruction led by La France insoumise and Ecologists. The organization's collaborative efforts with individual deputies had proven effective, as indicated by the outcome.
However, despite the FNSEA's efforts, the motion to reject the bill did not pass, allowing the bill to progress in the parliamentary process. The focus now shifts to the mixed parliamentary committee to advance the bill further.
- The farmers' demonstration, though successful in winning support for a motion to reject a bill aimed at easing farming constraints, did not pass in the National Assembly, highlighting the influence of policy-and-legislation in the politics of general-news.
- The retail impact of the rejected bill, initially aimed at addressing the farming profession, is yet to be seen, but the strategy employed by the FNSEA and individual deputies to bypass a public debate and route the text directly to the mixed parliamentary committee could set a precedent for future policy decisions.
