Three months after the fire which destroyed the cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris, the law for the restoration and conservation of Our Lady has been finally adopted on Tuesday in the national Assembly. Deemed «useless» by the opposition, it has given rise to heated discussions in the session – the topic passionate about France and far exceeds the short text of the law.
The declared objective of the government is to provide the means of restoration in the five-year period desired by Emmanuel Macron and deemed «achievable» by Philippe Villeneuve, a chief architect of Notre-Dame. «We should not confuse speed and haste,» repeated Franck Riester, the minister of Culture, implying that this period was not, in fact, that a lens designed to put everyone on.
«we should not confuse speed and haste»
The law, which is relatively short, revolves around three chapters: the first concerns the organisation of the collection of funds, the second, the establishment of a new institution to manage the work, the final lastly contains measures of administrative simplifications. The text ratifies the opening, April 16, of a national drive to receive the promised gifts by individuals, businesses, and communities, of which the amount expected to reach 900 million euros (the cost of the work has still not been encrypted). The law provides for a tax deduction outstanding 75 % (within the limit of € 1,000) to individuals, compared with 66 % usually. Two major donors, Bernard Arnault and François Pinault, has made it clear that they were willing to give up the tax deduction. For the other, or for businesses, it will be 60 %.
The cathedral is always in-phase so-called urgent imperative. 130 people work at its security and to the cleanup of the site, contaminated with lead content originally in the vaults. The rate of lead on the square in front is still too high to be able to receive the public.
«We will act in a transparent manner»
The law also creates a new public establishment placed under the supervision of the minister of Culture, who will be responsible for ensuring the conduct and coordination of work and study – every word has been weighed in the session – with the help of a scientific council. It will be headed by general Georgelin, which is already installed at the Elysée palace, as a special adviser to the president of the Republic. The general should reach out to more people, the number of which is under discussion. The board of directors of the institution should be open to representatives of the ministry of Culture, the City of Paris, but also of the Church, which is affectataire of the cathedral.
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the last part of The text gave rise to severe fighting in the Senate and the Assembly. Article 9 is in effect on possible derogations from the rules of urban planning and environmental protection, in order to expedite the work. Several senators noted that it would be improper for the State to derogate from the common rule, while it imposes a strict framework for the mayors and elected officials who want to restore a historical monument. In response to criticism, the government has agreed to list in the law for certain exemptions, notably the one concerning the architecture of prevention. Others, on the road, the urban planning or the environmental code, will be fixed by ordinances contrary to the wish of the senators. During the discussions, several elected officials have attempted to introduce in vain the term «identical reconstruction» in the text, in order to cut short the idea of architectural competitions, wanted by Emmanuel Macron. «We will act in a transparent manner, with the aim to be at the height of the monument,» promised Franck Riester, the minister of Culture, Tuesday at the national Assembly, adding that the government «would not do anything».
The Qatar flies to the rescue of the cathedral
The figure had been held until then secret. But in the interview granted by general Georgelin, to CNews, we hear the latter affirm that among the foreign donors included the Qatar. In fact, the countries of the Gulf has given 20 million euros to help in the restoration of Notre-Dame de Paris. The amount, which was confirmed on Tuesday to the Figaro, is very high (for example, the region of Île-de-France has paid 10). It confirms the involvement of this country in the Gulf in the funding of the parisian heritage, like the fountains for the rond-point des Champs-Élysées or the Hotel of the Navy, with the collection Al Thani.
