To cool or not to cool: French politicians draw battle lines over aircon

{"text":[[{"start":8.75,"text":"France has a new summer ritual to complement quaffing rosé and taking languorous holidays — fighting over air conditioning. "}],[{"start":16.05,"text":"As an intense heatwave sent temperatures above 40C this week in cities from Bordeaux to Nantes, far-right presidential hopeful Marine Le Pen accused leftist parties and green activists of ideologically opposing air conditioning at the expense of public health. "}],[{"start":33.35,"text":"“It is absurd to have people die because of the heat,” said the leader of the Rassemblement National party. “If I am elected president, I will put into place a massive air-conditioning plan, starting in places with the most vulnerable populations — hospitals, care homes and schools.” "}],[{"start":50.150000000000006,"text":"Far-left leader and rival candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon hit back: “Absolutely not. Installing air conditioning everywhere would only mean increasing the damage,” he said, alluding to the risk of increased carbon emissions."}],[{"start":null,"text":"

"}],[{"start":63.7,"text":"To cool or not to cool has become another front in the culture wars in France, a prism through which politicians, scientists and environmentalists fight over how to curb climate change and mitigate the immediate fallout of rising temperatures. France logged its hottest day ever on record on Tuesday, prompting the Tour Eiffel and the Louvre museum to close. "}],[{"start":86.35,"text":"Politicians have been routinely asked what their stance is on air conditioning on TV news channels doing blanket coverage of the heatwave, while climate experts warn that its expansion globally will increase electricity consumption and greenhouse gas emissions."}],[{"start":102.14999999999999,"text":"In France, where 70 per cent of electricity comes from low-carbon nuclear power, such concerns are lessened, yet wariness about air conditioning persists. "}],[{"start":111.44999999999999,"text":"The French debate over air conditioning largely focuses on whether it is an unnecessary extravagance or environmentally sensible. But there is also an enduring belief among many that too much cooling can cause “thermal shock” if one goes too quickly from one extreme to another and that it causes people to catch colds or feel nauseous. "}],[{"start":null,"text":""}],[{"start":132.14999999999998,"text":"Le Pen’s RN has made advocating for air conditioning part of a broad populist critique of what it calls the excesses of green policies enacted by President Emmanuel Macron and the EU. The RN, which is polling as the frontrunner in the race to succeed Macron next year, argues that stricter rules on everything from car emissions to phase-outs of gas boilers saddle working-class people with additional costs on unreasonable timelines. "}],[{"start":157.99999999999997,"text":"In the National Assembly, where the RN is the single largest opposition party, it helped force the government to water down regulations aimed at pressuring homeowners to do energy-efficiency upgrades or face rental bans, and another that excluded older, polluting vehicles from city centres. "}],[{"start":176.64999999999998,"text":"Green Party leader Marine Tondelier, who is also running for president, has mocked the RN’s sudden interest in the climate after years of undermining scientists for being alarmist. "}],[{"start":187.29999999999998,"text":"The Green Party platform calls individual air conditioning a “maladaptive response” that “heats up neighbourhoods and weighs on the electricity grid”, concerns that have also been raised by the International Energy Agency. Instead, the left wants to accelerate the renovation of buildings to improve air circulation and temperature control, while also expanding green spaces in cities. "}],[{"start":210.45,"text":"Studies suggest widespread air conditioning can add to urban heat in dense areas, particularly at night, by releasing waste heat into streets and rooftops. But the IEA says such drawbacks must be weighed against how access to effective cooling saves lives, especially of vulnerable people."}],[{"start":null,"text":""}],[{"start":229.89999999999998,"text":"President Emmanuel Macron’s successive governments have produced increasingly ambitious adaptation plans based on the scenario of temperatures rising by 4C by 2100. But critics say implementation has lagged behind the rhetoric. Billions have been earmarked to subsidise green home renovations yet the programme was plagued both by excessive red tape and fraud, while efforts to expand renewable power have been slow. "}],[{"start":255.84999999999997,"text":"Meteorologists have warned that the episode of elevated temperatures, which is the second this year after one in May, could be as bad as the historic one in 2003 that led to 14,800 excess deaths in France, many of them elderly. That heatwave and its mishandling by public health authorities, many of whom were on August holidays, shocked the country and led to certain reforms."}],[{"start":280.9,"text":"“The 2003 heatwave should have been followed by a massive plan to install air conditioning, which unfortunately in France has long been an ideological taboo imposed by the left,” said Jean-Philippe Tanguy, a senior RN lawmaker. "}],[{"start":null,"text":""}],[{"start":294.45,"text":"Attitudes are shifting. AC adoption in homes has risen from 14 per cent in 2016 to 25 per cent in 2020, according to the environmental agency Ademe, the last year for which figures are available. Yet levels remain much lower than in southern Europe or the US at more than 70 per cent. "}],[{"start":313.3,"text":"About two-thirds of offices have air conditioning, but only 40 per cent of healthcare facilities do and only 7 per cent of public transport."}],[{"start":322.05,"text":"An Ipsos poll taken in June showed 84 per cent of respondents see air conditioning as the most effective way to cope with heat, though 78 per cent say it is not environmentally friendly. In contrast, support is wide for expanding green spaces in cities and renovating buildings. "}],[{"start":340.85,"text":"Leftist politicians appear to have realised that asking people to just grit their teeth and bear the heat may no longer be viable. "}],[{"start":347.90000000000003,"text":"Tondelier denied that her party was anti-AC, saying there was “no taboo” against it, just that it was not a panacea. The Greens are also proposing a “climate leave” entitlement of up to five days a year, paid for by the state, for workers most exposed to extreme heat. "}],[{"start":null,"text":""}],[{"start":365.25000000000006,"text":"Schools remain a weak spot: about 1,800 schools were shut on Tuesday because they were deemed too hot, while another 8,000 or so closed early."}],[{"start":374.65000000000003,"text":"Only 14 per cent of schools have air conditioning, according to the environmental agency Ademe, and many lack basic measures such as shutters, curtains or even windows that open. "}],[{"start":386.70000000000005,"text":"Worried parents turned up at schools in recent days with do-it-yourself fixes like fans or stickers to put on windows to block out the sun."}],[{"start":395.50000000000006,"text":"Emmanuel Grégoire, the Socialist mayor of Paris, unlocked emergency funds to buy 1,200 new AC units for the 620 schools in the capital. “There will be an AC unit delivered to every school in Paris by the end of next week,” he promised."}],[{"start":411.25000000000006,"text":"Data visualisation by Andrew Francisco"}],[{"start":null,"text":""}],[{"start":null,"text":""}],[{"start":414.45000000000005,"text":"Where climate change meets business, markets and politics. Explore the FT’s coverage here."}],[{"start":420.45000000000005,"text":"Are you curious about the FT’s environmental sustainability commitments? Find out more about our science-based targets here"}],[{"start":433.95000000000005,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1782285902_1789.mp3"}