France supports raising taxes on private jets, minister says
The French government backs efforts to raise taxes on private jets, Ecological Transition Minister Christophe Béchu said on Saturday.
“It makes sense that pollutants are taxed, and that the more you pollute, the more you’re taxed,” Béchu said in an interview with France Info radio. “The government supports this amendment.”
Béchu’s comments come after several lawmakers from President Emmanuel Macron’s Renaissance party filed an amendment to the Budget that would align taxes on fuel used by private jets with those used by cars.
Transport Minister Clement Beaune, who indicated this summer that the government was looking into clamping down on private jet use, said in an interview on LCI television on Friday that the proposed tax would serve as a “rebalancing” measure given that private jets are taxed lower than cars.
Private jets favored by the wealthy have long been targeted by environmental groups over their emissions.
Their use is now coming under further scrutiny as regular households in France are being asked to save energy by heating homes to 19°C and taking shorter showers.