The Mouvement Réformateur held a press conference on energy this Thursday, 2 April, in the presence of our President Georges‑Louis Bouchez, Federal Minister of Energy Mathieu Bihet and the Walloon Minister of Energy, Cécile Neven. The aim: to highlight the risk of persistently expensive energy in Europe, a consequence of both the geopolitical situation and structural choices imposed by the European Union, which threaten sovereignty, prosperity and even decarbonisation.
The MR pointed out that more than 75% of our energy supply still relies on oil and gas, and that supply shocks, such as those linked to the Strait of Hormuz or the loss of certain capacity in Qatar, directly affect the prices paid by households and businesses. For Georges‑Louis Bouchez, continuing to indiscriminately increase taxes and European standards on fossil energy, while remaining massively dependent on the outside, amounts to weakening our industrial fabric, our economy and our capacity to invest in decarbonised sectors.
We are making a clear choice: "We want abundant, affordable and decarbonised energy. Not by impoverishing Europe, but by making it stronger." Specifically, the MR advocates diversifying sources and supply routes, putting energy back at the heart of European foreign policy, ending the overregulation that artificially raises bills, and placing all decarbonised energies, including nuclear power, on an equal footing within the European framework.
The message is clear: expensive energy is not inevitable, it is a political choice. The MR rejects a path in which Europe makes itself virtuous by importing its products and exporting its emissions. We are calling for a fundamental shift in European energy policy: less magical thinking, less bureaucracy, more trust in engineers, entrepreneurs and industrial sectors capable of delivering, here at home, the low-carbon solutions of tomorrow.