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France adopts law upholding ban on controversial insecticide
France adopts law upholding ban on controversial insecticide
By Anna SMOLCHENKO
Paris (AFP) Aug 12, 2025

French President Emmanuel Macron has signed into law a controversial bill that bars the reintroduction of a bee-killing pesticide following a groundswell of public opposition.

The legislation has been at the heart of a major debate in France and sparked a petition that was wildly successful, racking up an unprecedented 2.1 million signatures.

Critics of the bill, adopted in July in a fractured parliament, say it was rushed through without proper debate, ignored public opinion and was an example of elite overreach.

The law was published in the government's official journal on Tuesday after the Constitutional Council, the country's highest court, struck down the contested provision about the reintroduction of acetamiprid last week.

The court said a group of pesticides known as neonicotinoids posed "risks to human health" and the legislation was unconstitutional as it undermined the right to live in a balanced and healthy environment as guaranteed by the country's environmental charter.

The legislation has been dubbed the Duplomb law, after its author, Laurent Duplomb, a senator for the right-wing Republicans party.

Banned in France since 2018, acetamiprid is legal in the European Union and proponents say beet and hazelnut growers need it to help them compete with their European counterparts.

The main farmers' union, FNSEA, has railed against the court ruling, calling it "unacceptable."

Supporters of the petition said their frustration with the legislation went beyond environmental concerns.

Commentators have said that the grassroots movement against the bill may be a sign of exasperation with deadlock in a hung parliament and a desire to have a greater say in political matters.

After the ruling, Macron had said he intended to quickly enact the law and rejected further parliamentary debate, to the dismay of critics.

The popular petition calls not only for the repeal of the legislation but also a review of the conditions under which it was adopted and public consultation with health, agriculture and environmental experts.

- 'Breach of trust' -

Antoine Leaument, a lawmaker with the hard left France Unbowed (LFI) party, said the opponents of the legislation had "won the battle."

At the same time he expressed regret that Macron had enacted the legislation "rather than calling for a new vote" in parliament.

Speaking to broadcaster franceinfo, Leaument also called for "strong measures" to prevent food grown with the help of the pesticide from entering France.

In an open letter published in French daily Le Monde, around a hundred elected officials including mayors, lawmakers and municipal councillors called for a nationwide environmental debate.

"Despite two million signatures and censorship by the Constitutional Council, Emmanuel Macron announced that he would enact the law. Which he did on Tuesday," said the letter, calling it "a major breach of trust with the French people."

"Every time the central government ignores the will of the people, it is local elected officials who have to work tirelessly to repair democracy and the link between citizens and decision-makers," the letter said.

The officials said French people demanded cleaner air and healthier food and called for "national consultations on environmental health, which cannot be left to the lobbies alone."

French Health Minister Yannick Neuder has called for a European reassessment of the impact of acetamiprid on human health.

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