Speech on the State of the Nation: Disappointing and Concerning from the Perspective of Sustainable Development
From the perspective of Mouvement Ecologique, the Prime Minister’s speech on the state of the nation must, in an initial assessment, be considered disappointing and even concerning with regard to sustainable development.
The core analysis of the speech is clear: it appears that the Prime Minister has not recognized the signs of the times, even though he repeatedly refers to the importance of shaping the future. The terms “environmental policy”, “sustainable development”, “resource protection”, and “biodiversity” were not mentioned even once, as if they were foreign concepts. The reality that our water – including drinking water – is now contaminated with forever chemicals, that pesticide pollution must be seen as a widespread phenomenon, that species extinction continues unchecked, that our cities are heading toward dangerous overheating, that the risk of water shortages in Luxembourg is increasing, and that forests – key to climate protection and human well-being – are in worse condition than ever… none of this was addressed in the speech. Even overdue measures such as “green budgeting”, which could actually open new financial resources for the state, were ignored. The tone of the speech is clear: issues of sustainable development seem subordinate to the dogma of economic growth.
The speech reveals a fundamentally problematic attitude of the Prime Minister toward the essential issues of sustainable development and the acute challenges of the climate and biodiversity crises. Jean-Claude Juncker once said, during his time as Prime Minister, that he lacked a “gut feeling” for environmental policy. This seems to be true – so far – for the current Prime Minister as well, except that the crises have now intensified.
The fact that the laws of nature define the limits of economic activity, that they determine the framework of social and economic actions and cannot be altered by humans, does not appear to be recognized by this government.
Read the detailed analysis by Mouvement Ecologique HERE