French transport minister Clément Beaune has called for flights by private jets to be restricted because of their outsize contribution to climate change, joining an increasingly heated debate in France about measures needed to save energy and limit global warming.
“Without resorting to demagogy or launching ad hominem attacks, there are some behaviours that are no longer acceptable,” Beaune, who is close to president Emmanuel Macron, told Le Parisien newspaper at the weekend. “I think we should act to regulate flights by private jets. ”
While there might be urgent business trips, private jet flights could not be taken “just for the comfort of individuals” given the efforts demanded of ordinary people by Macron, Beaune said.
Some Green and leftwing politicians, who make up the largest opposition bloc in the French National Assembly since the June elections, have called for an outright ban on private jet use by business leaders and the wealthy and say they want to propose a draft law in the autumn.
“I Fly Bernard”, one of several recently launched Twitter accounts, has garnered more than 60,000 followers for its campaign to track flights and name and shame the users of private jets. The account’s name is a reference to
LVMH founder Bernard Arnault, Europe’s richest person.