La fight against the high cost of living in the Overseas Territories enters a new legislative phase. A long-awaited bill was presented on July 30th in cabinet by Manuel Valls, Minister of Overseas Territories.
For the senator Annick petrus, this initiative contains “strong measures to reduce price gaps, improve the transparency of commercial relations and support our local businesses”. She particularly welcomes Article 8, directly targeting overseas communities such as Saint-Martin, which “will put end to practices discriminatory of certain suppliers towards us”.
The text, which includes 16 articles, intends to act on both transparency, competition, purchasing power and support for local production. It provides, among other things, the expansion of the price-quality shield to services like telephony, bank charges or car maintenance, increased sanctions in the event of non-compliance with the agreements, as well as authorization for some basic necessities being sold at a loss, excluding shipping costs.
measures sometimes considered “timid” by certain elected officials, notably in Martinique or to Réunion. But for Annick Pétrus, The main thing is that the debate is opened. “I will ensure that this law concretely meets the needs of the people of Saint-Martin,” assures the senator, who will closely monitor the discussions at Senate from September 29. _Vx
See also: https://www.faxinfo.fr/outre-mer-un-ciom-pour-repondre-aux-urgences-et-preparer-lavenir/
https://faxinfo.fr/en/politique-vie-chere-le-projet-de-loi-ultramarin-arrive-au-senat/
