Government formation: mayors are getting impatient | EUROtoday

By opening the 26^it’s At the assembly of the Association of Small Towns of France (APVF), which brings collectively municipalities with 2,500 to 25,000 inhabitants, on Thursday, September 19, in Amboise (Indre-et-Loire), the president, Christophe Bouillon, recalled that the occasion was initially deliberate for June. But the dissolution of the National Assembly, introduced on June 9, modified the state of affairs. “We postponed the meeting to be able to welcome the members of the new government”famous Mr. Bouillon, saying: “They are not here.” The room laughed. But some laughed bitterly.

It has now been greater than two months for the reason that ministers resigned. And the mayors are getting impatient. “On ultra-concrete projects, we are in an abyss of uncertaintyconfides Daniel Cornalba, mayor (non-party) of L'Etang-la-Ville (Yvelines)We have a course, we are moving forward, but at the same time, the current situation has a real impact on the balance of budgets and on knowing who our partners will be.”

The younger mayor offers an instance: the inhabitants of his city has simply jumped by 10% (to five,500 inhabitants) with the supply of a brand new residence. “I have to welcome these families, he explains, that I expand and redevelop the school. It costs 7 million euros, that's a year's budget for us.” But Mr. Cornalba has had issue in closing his spherical desk. “Everyone is in a state of uncertainty, it freezes projects”he notes, questioning in regards to the public support that his metropolis might obtain or about its potential companions, such because the division or the area, themselves ready.

One of the problems is the inexperienced fund

The similar statement applies to the mayor of Châteauroux, Gil Avérous, who left Les Républicains this yr. “In terms of housing, everything has come to a standstill”he regrets. Real property gamers are ready to search out out whether or not taxation might be referred to as into query. “The sale of building land is frozen because the banks want to know what economic policy will be implemented, continues the elected officialThere is a need to be reassured, to have clarity and a government at work…

Mr. Avérous, who is also president of the association Villes de France (which brings together municipalities with populations ranging from 10,000 to 100,000), is concerned about the way in which the 2025 finance law will be drawn up, and the choices that will be made. “We should not lose a yr if we miss the 2025 finances”he confides.

One of the issues is the green fund. In the preparatory budget documents of Gabriel Attal's government, this government mechanism that supports local authorities in the ecological transition, was to be reduced from 2.5 billion euros in 2024 to 1 billion in 2025. “It's not simply the ice cap that's melting, there's additionally the inexperienced fund. This will not be severe.”deplored Christophe Bouillon, in Amboise. Gil Avérous doesn’t disguise his concern in regards to the budgetary arbitrations which is able to lastly be made on this topic. “The inexperienced fund is the set off for a lot of initiatives, he recollects. We must defend our place and clarify why it’s virtuous. But we’ve got nobody to speak to! We are being questioned about native funds, however there isn’t any one to reply to…

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