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French government warns private jet sector could face tighter regulations
Ross Cullen in Paris, France
Europe;France
02:10

At Le Bourget Airport in Paris, executive cars with blacked-out windows pull up outside the terminal. The passengers walk calmly through the doors in smart suits and business attire. There is the incessant whine of jet engines idling on the tarmac before take off.

The atmosphere at Paris's business airport at Le Bourget is quite different from the mass queuing, luggage check-in and security stresses associated with Charles de Gaulle airport, the country's biggest flight hub, just a few miles to the north. This is where President Emmanuel Macron comes when he travels in and out of the capital on a plane.

But the expensive serenity of luxury plane travel could soon be upset.

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A clampdown on private jet flights is being proposed by France's Transport Minister Clement Beaune, who wants to impose greater regulations on the sector.

The government does not have a majority in parliament but the idea has already ignited support among opposition Green MPs. Their leader Julien Bayou says it is time to act because private jet emissions are "literally poisoning us."

The transport secretary did concede that "business aviation is an important economic activity in France." But Beaune said that every sector must play its part at a time when the president is calling on the public to try to reduce emissions and get accustomed to using less energy.

While the French government is planning to bring forward another bill focused on the environment this September, Beaune says private jet flights and emissions are an issue that needs to be addressed not just by national governments but also by the European Union.

EU transport officials are due to meet in October where they could discuss tighter restrictions on the business travel sector.

The airline industry is responsible for two to three percent of global CO2 emissions, but according to campaign groups, carbon footprint for each passenger using a private flight is five to 14 times greater than that generated on a commercial flight.

The carbon footprint of private jet journeys is also 50 times greater than that of a train journey.

It comes after a public backlash against well-known figures like Taylor Swift and Elon Musk, who have been criticized this summer for using their personal planes for short journeys that could have been completed using cars or trains.

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