Citizens' assembly ready to help Macron set French climate policies
by Angelique Chrisafis in Paris from on (#4XQHX)
President backs democratic experiment handing power to 150 people chosen at random
In a grandiose 1930s building on the banks of the Seine in Paris, 150 French citizens chosen at random had gathered. Ranging from 16-year-old school pupils to carers, shuttle-bus drivers and retired rail workers, the French president said these ordinary people would define the next phase of his term in power.
They are part of France's latest democratic experiment: a randomly selected citizens' assembly that has been promised more power than any other - the ability to set Emmanuel Macron's policy on cutting carbon emissions, as he faces harsh criticism that he is not doing enough to tackle the climate emergency.
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