23-year-old student rallies half a million French against controversial farming law

illuminem summarises for you the essential news of the day. Read the full piece on POLITICO or enjoy below:

🗞️ Driving the news: A petition launched by 23-year-old Bordeaux student Eleonore Pattery to repeal France’s controversial “Loi Duplomb” farming law has surpassed 549,000 signatures, exceeding the threshold to trigger a parliamentary debate
• The law, passed earlier this month, reauthorizes the use of acetamiprid — an insecticide banned since 2018 — sparking backlash from environmental and health advocates
• Parliamentary leaders have confirmed the issue could be debated in the National Assembly as early as this fall

🔭 The context: The Loi Duplomb, promoted by France’s government and major agricultural lobbies (FNSEA and Jeunes Agriculteurs), aims to ease bureaucratic burdens on farmers and temporarily lift pesticide bans to support crop yields
• It has faced strong opposition from left-wing parties, green movements, and some farmers’ unions, who argue it undermines France’s commitments to biodiversity, public health, and EU pesticide reduction targets
• The petition marks the first time in modern French history that citizen signatures have forced a legislative debate

🌍 Why it matters for the planet: Reintroducing banned pesticides risks reversing hard-won progress on pollinator protection, soil and water quality, and public health
• The case highlights tensions between short-term agricultural productivity and long-term environmental stewardship in the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy
• It also signals the growing power of civic mobilization to influence national policies with global environmental implications

⏭️ What's next: The National Assembly’s Conference of Presidents is expected to decide in September whether to schedule the debate
• Even though the petition cannot directly repeal the law, the process could pressure the government to amend or soften its implementation
• Separately, France’s Constitutional Council is reviewing the law’s legality, with a ruling possible later this year
• Environmental groups and opposition parties are likely to sustain public campaigns in the run-up to the parliamentary session

💬 One quote: “Ignoring this petition would be a democratic denial,” — Aurélie Trouvé, chair of the National Assembly’s economic affairs committee and member of France Unbowed

📈 One stat: 549,000+ signatures — well above the 500,000 threshold required for a citizen-initiated parliamentary debate in France

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