French press review 29 July 2016

The French national power company signs a deal to build two pressurised water nuclear reactors in England, something it has not yet managed to do in France, or anywhere else. Nothing less than the future of the French nuclear industry is at stake.

Right-wing Le Figaro gives front-page prominence to what it calls "The 22 billion euro gamble by EDF in England," EDF being the French national power supplier.

Yesterday, bosses at the electricity company ignored the recent resignation of one of the project leaders and warnings of disaster from the trade unions, and signed the Final Investment Decision to build two pressurised water reactors at Hinkley Point in Somerset.

According to Le Figaro, nothing less than the future of the French nuclear industry is at stake.

Sadly, the past of the French nuclear industry is far from glorious, with huge over-spends and staggering technical difficulties dogging similar projects in northern France and in Finland.

Le Figaro says the bet is a simple one: if the French pull it off, on time and on budget, the country will earn three billion euros per year from 2026, a cool 9 percent return on investment. But if they fail, and no one is yet completely sure that it is humanly possible to build a third generation nuclear reactor, then French electricity and nuclear expertise will go definitively down the polished pipe.

There's also a political angle, since the French taxpayer is going to have to shell out the seven billion euros needed to keep EDF afloat next year, and the new generators, if they can ever be got cooking, are scheduled to replace France's current nuclear equipment.

So, the 22 billion bet is only the tip of the iceberg.

Should we see the faces of those who murder in the name of Allah?

Left-leaning Libération wonders about the part the French media have played in the wake of recent terrorist attrocities, publishing the names and photographs of those responsible for the attacks.

The paper's editorial is absolutely clear: the right to inform is paramount, and publishing pictures is not going to change the strategy of those motivated to perpetrate murders like those in Nice or St Etienne du Rouvray.

Libé accepts that there is a risk that certain individuals might be driven by the hope of a sick renown after their deaths, that they might encourage other, equally sick, individuals to follow in their bloody footsteps.

More seriously, Libération wonders about the part being played by western media in this terrorist war, given that the way terrorist acts are reflected in the press and on television contribute to the efforts of the perpretrators, who wants us fearful, divided, intimidated.

But the logic of that position implies an equal media embargo on the victims, the dangers, the successes of the security forces. Any limitation of our fundamental rights is a victory for the terrorists.

Better in the long run to look the terrorists squarely in the face, says Libé.

Let's save Islam from the clutches of Islamic State

In Le Monde, the Moroccan writer Tahar Ben Jelloun says it is time to save islam from the claws of Islamic State.

The basis of islam is peace and fraternity, says Jelloun. Those behind the current barbarity have chosen exclusion and fanaticism, the massacre of the innocent. In targetting a priest in a church, they have launched a new war of religion. And, tragically, history has shown such wars to be long and bitter.

French economy goes back to sleep

Financial paper Les Echos gives pride of place to the bad news that the French economy appears to have gone asleep again. After a dynamic start to the year, it looks as if gross domestic product is not going to grow at all in the third quarter.

Investors are keeping their cash, households are not spending any money, the local market has stagnated.

The only good news is that exports are doing quite nicely, thank you.