The petition against the Duplomb law on the National Assembly website has exceeded 500,000 signatures... for nothing?
By The New Obs with AFP
Two young women in front of the National Assembly holding placards against the Duplomb law. BABETH ALOY / HANS LUCAS VIA AFP
Could it reignite the debate on the Duplomb Law? The petition, submitted by a student on the National Assembly website, has broken all signature records. With 500,000 signatures, the controversial agricultural law could be debated again in Parliament.
It was on July 10, two days after the final adoption of the law and its highly contested measure of reintroducing a pesticide, that Eléonore Pattery, a 23-year-old master's student, launched the petition on the National Assembly website.
Having gone unnoticed in the early days, it quickly gained momentum. Eight days later, this Friday, it had gathered more than 200,000 signatures. This Saturday at 4 p.m., the counter surpassed 500,000 signatures! A jump of 300,000 in 24 hours, probably linked to the numerous relays on social networks by personalities like the actor Pierre Niney and numerous left-wing MPs.
"200,000 signatures in ten days, in the middle of summer, on the Assembly website requesting a France Connect connection, the success is undeniable," rejoiced the Green Party representative Benoît Biteau even before the explosion of the last 24 hours.
Initially, having reached the threshold of 100,000 signatures, it was already guaranteed to be published on the National Assembly website and to be discussed in the Economic Affairs Committee.
In all likelihood, the target of 500,000 signatures, which must still be "from at least 30 overseas departments or communities" , allowing the inclusion of this petition on the agenda of the National Assembly chamber, was therefore reached in record time. The petition had until July 17, 2026, or about a year, to be completed. A first, since no petition has ever been debated in the chamber in the history of the Fifth Republic. According to "Le Figaro" , a petition opposing "deaths, violence and abuse linked to hunting" , signed by 122,484 in September 2021, led to the creation of a monitoring mission on the security of hunting. But another petition calling for the dissolution of BRAV-M in 2023 was closed by the Law Commission, even though it had reached 263,887 signatures. Currently, the other most-signed petitions have only between 30,000 and 55,000 signatures. Reaching 500,000 signatures in such a short time is therefore a clear victory for opponents of the Duplomb law. But to what end?
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Because if it is from this threshold that the Conference of Presidents of the National Assembly can decide to organize a debate in public session, only the petition will be debated. The law, however, will not be re-examined on the merits, let alone possibly repealed...
"It's unexpected and exceptional," enthused the president of the Economic Affairs Committee, LFI MP Aurélie Trouvé, to AFP, even before the symbolic threshold was crossed. The MP had indicated that she would include it on her committee's agenda when the new term begins in September. A vote will then decide whether to shelve it or examine it.
This enthusiasm "reflects the extreme concern and opposition of a large number of people who are discovering this law" and its effects, with the reauthorization of a "dangerous pesticide" , comments the rebellious elected official.
In her petition, the student, who presents herself as a "future environmental health professional," writes that the Duplomb law "is a scientific, ethical, environmental and health aberration," before calling for "its immediate repeal."
This text once again authorizes, by way of derogation, the use of acetamiprid, banned in France but authorized elsewhere in Europe until 2033. The product is particularly in demand by beet and hazelnut producers, who believe they have no alternative against pests and are subject to unfair competition.
On the other hand, beekeepers warn of "a bee killer." Its effects on humans are also a source of concern, even if the risks remain uncertain due to a lack of large-scale studies.
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