Clément Beaune travel tips

France will seek support from other European Union countries for a minimum price on flights in Europe, in a bid to reduce the aviation sector’s contribution to climate change, Transport Minister Clement Beaune has said.

France will seek support from other EU nations for a minimum price on flights in an effort to cut the aviation sector's carbon emissions. 

Ryanair said on Thursday it did not see a risk of the European Union introducing minimum prices or compulsory limits on flights because it would disenfranchise poorer people, making it politically impossible.

France plans to introduce an unlimited rail pass next year months after the country banned many domestic flights.

Ultra-cheap flights could be banned in Europe if a forthcoming proposal is approved by the EU: Officials in France want to set a price minimum on airfares across Europe to help reduce carbon emissions.

France could well be the perfect place to track the progress of the main battle over the future of travel: trains versus planes. In May 2021, France positioned itself as the frontrunner in a carbon-cutting train renaissance when its government enacted a ban on domestic flights where the journey could be done by train in less than two and a half hours. “We are the first to do it,” Emmanuel Macron said on Twitter, and it was hailed by minister Clément Beaune as a “powerful message” and a “strong symbol”. The European Commission designated 2021 as the “Year of European Rail” and billions of euros have since poured into railway infrastructure across central and eastern Europe.

The French government announced that it hopes to bring in a minimum price for airline tickets to eliminate the possibility of low-cost flights. The French transport minister, Clément Beaune, said in an interview with business magazine Obs that it was no longer feasible in a time of environmental crisis to buy tickets that cost just $10.

The French government is set to finance an expansion and improvement of its rail sector to the tune of €100 million ($110 million) and has decided to do it by increasing the tax on airline tickets. After its recent introduction of banning short-haul flights under 2.5 hours, this is a new phase in encouraging domestic train travel over air travel to meet its environmental targets.