Black Friday: French MPs call for sales frenzy to be banned

Making event illegal would curb ‘overconsumption’, politicians say

MPs in France have called for the country to ban Black Friday, the November sales event that has morphed into a global phenomenon.

A French legislative committee has passed an amendment proposing to make it against the law to promote the annual shopping frenzy, warning the extra sales causes “resources waste” and “overconsumption”.

The proposal, put forward by France’s former environment minister Delphine Batho, will be debated next month in the National Assembly, the lower house of parliament.

France’s e-commerce union has condemned the move.

Separately, the ecological transition minister, Elisabeth Borne, has criticised Black Friday for creating “traffic jams, pollution, and gas emissions”.

“We cannot both reduce greenhouse gas emissions and call for a consumer frenzy. Above all, we must consume better,” she told BFM Business.

She added she would support Black Friday if it helped small French traders, but said it mostly benefited large online retailers.

French climate activists are planning a “Block Friday” demonstration to coincide with the sales on Friday.

Additional reporting by agencies