This is one of the first measures resulting from the Citizens’ Convention for the climate. From spring 2021, public terraces can no longer be heated.
Winter will be harsh even in the terraces of the cafes. The ban on heating public terraces was announced this Monday 27th July, 2020 by the Minister of Ecological Transition Barbara Pompili.
This is one of the first government measures resulting from the Citizen’s Climate Convention.
“We are going to ban outdoor heating on public spaces, terraces” and forced to “close the doors for all heated or air-conditioned buildings open to the public,” said Barbara Pompili.
You cannot heat a terrace at full capacity in the middle of winter for the simple pleasure of drinking your coffee while you are hot.
Ecological aberration and economic emergency
Despite the “ecological aberration” of these practices pointed out by the Minister for Ecological Transition, the government has given restaurant owners a break for the coming winter. The ban will not come into force until after the winter of 2021. This should allow them to cushion the shock of the economic crisis linked to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“People have understood that we are vulnerable and that if we do nothing, after the health crisis, we will have the ecological crisis,” said Barbara Pompili in a tweet.
Je veux gagner la bataille écologique. La volonté, les moyens sont là. Les voyants sont au vert. La crise du Covid a été un accélérateur. Les gens ont compris que nous sommes vulnérables et que, si nous ne faisons rien, après la crise sanitaire, nous aurons la crise écologique. https://t.co/lSwerMXrTN
— Barbara Pompili (@barbarapompili) July 27, 2020
The measure, however, angered MEP Thierry Mariani (Rassemblement national) who deemed the measure “suicidal and irresponsible”, while “many cafes and restaurants are on the verge of bankruptcy after confinement”.
Suicidaire et irresponsable …
Alors que de nombreux cafés et restaurants sont au bord de la faillite après le confinement, l’interdiction des terrasses chauffées est le meilleur moyen de leur faire faire faillite encore plus vite !https://t.co/f7vrC3bmyR— Thierry MARIANI (@ThierryMARIANI) July 27, 2020
