The finance bill (PLF) for 2023 currently being debated in the National Assembly provides for a sharp increase in “brown” spending due to a shield on energy prices, according to a budget document presented on Tuesday.
State expenditure unfavorable to the environment thus increases from 10.3 billion this year to 19.6 billion next year, according to the Minister of the Economy, which is publishing a green budget annexed to the PLF for the third consecutive year.
Brown spending up more than 10 billion euros
This document lists 33.9 billion euros in green expenditure, up 4.5 billion over one year, including the France 2030 investment plan, the energy renovation of buildings, reduced VAT for improvement works energy or the bonus for the purchase of electric or hybrid vehicles.
Expenditure with a mixed environmental effect amounts to 2.3 billion euros and unfavorable expenditure to 10.7 billion, excluding the energy shield which amounts to 8.9 billion in net budget expenditure.
Brown expenditure, excluding the energy shield, will increase next year from 400 million to 10.7 billion euros.
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70% of expenses considered neutral
The total of State expenditure classified as favourable, mixed or unfavorable to the environment represents less than 10% of the total expenditure entered in the State budget for next year, which amounts to some 480 billion euros.
Indeed, 70% of state spending is neutral, like social benefits, because it is impossible to determine their use, we explained to the minister. Finally, other expenses remain unquoted, such as those related to digital technology. If the exercise of the green budget is done on a constant basis, the reflections that we have between two exercises can lead to changes in the methodology, according to a ministerial adviser. Thus 2.3 billion euros of expenditure related to rail, formerly mixed classes are now considered favorable.
Expenditure is classified according to its environmental impact measured on six axes, inspired by the green taxonomy of activities at European level: climate mitigation, climate adaptation, water, waste, pollution and biodiversity, according to the minister’s report.
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