French Socialist presidential candidate Raphaël Glucksmann has vowed to “phase out” fossil fuels by doubling down on the green agenda with a €200 billion “ecological revolution” scheme.
Glucksmann, the winner of the Socialist Party presidential primary last month, has apparently narrowed in on the issue of climate change to differentiate himself from the crowded field of candidates vying to replace President Emmanuel Macron in next Spring’s elections.
During his first official trip as a presidential candidate on Tuesday, the French Member of the European Parliament visited a wind farm in Charente-Maritime, flanked by Green Party Senator Yannick Jadot.
A representative of the globalist, pro-EU left, Glucksmann, said that if elected to the Élysée, he vowed that he would “make the fight against climate change the be-all and end-all of public policy.”
To that end, the ‘Public Square’ candidate said that he would look to invest some €200 billion over five years with the aim of more than doubling so-called renewable energy production by 2035 and ultimately to phase out the use of fossil fuels in the French economy by 2050, Le Figaro reported.
The plan would see the government purchase one million compact electric cars, which would be leased out to the public for €100 per month with no down payment. Additionally, the government would fund a scheme to make a million housing heat pumps available for the cost of around €1 per day. Means-tested energy vouchers of between €200 and €500 would be given to millions of families under the plan.
Furthermore, the government would invest heavily in expanding public transportation, primarily rail, and would create a “Sustainable Mobility Pass” for €1 per day for those under 25 to discourage use of domestic flights.
While the full details of the plan will not be published until next month, he said that some of the funds for the green scheme will come from an “exceptional contribution”, in other words a five per cent wealth tax, on assets over €100 million.
Senator Jadot claimed this would raise around €50 billion and said that the remainder of the funds would come from taxes on oil and gas company profits, a European Union green bond, eliminating tax exemptions for domestic flights, increasing taxes on airline tickets, and targeted taxes on private jets and yachts.
Then, Glucksmann said that he will be hoping for a “ripple effect” of investments from private firms into green energy.
The announcement comes as the MEP is looking to cast himself as the sensible leftist candidate, as opposed to radical La France Insoumise (France in Rebellion/LFI) candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon, who is currently leading the field of challengers against frontrunner Marine Le Pen.
Glucksmann and Mélenchon were previously allied during the 2024 legislative elections, during which they formed the New Popular Front (NFP) coalition of leftist parties in a bid to stymie Le Pen’s ascendant National Rally. However, the left-wing alliance quickly fell apart after the election, with figures such as Glucksmann having accused Mélenchon of antisemitism over his strident anti-Israel positions and his alleged alignment with Islamist groups in France.
While both he and Mélenchon agree on the phaseout of fossil fuels, Glucksmann has yet to make his position on nuclear power public.
During his campaign launch over the weekend, Mélenchon called for a Germany-style shutdown of France’s nuclear fleet. For his part, Glucksmann said that he was in favour of maintaining the nation’s current fleet, but refused to comment on whether he would invest on the future development of more nuclear power reactors.
