A “special law” to rebuild Mayotte: what is this tool already used for Notre-Dame or the Olympics?

Emmanuel Macron promised Mayotte on Thursday a “special law” to facilitate the reconstruction of the archipelago, devastated by Cyclone Chido. We will “build with the Minister (of Overseas Territories) a special law because we cannot do it with the current instruments”, he said during a meeting with elected officials in Mamoudzou.

“We knew how to do it to organize the Olympic Games (…) to rebuild Notre-Dame de Paris and therefore we will do it to rebuild Mayotte,” he added, referring in particular to the need to be able to “deviate from the rules”.

Streamline procedures

Indeed, to rebuild Notre-Dame Cathedral within five years, the government had recourse to an exceptional bill, adopted by Parliament in July 2019. The text opened up the possibility for the government to derogate from legal obligations in terms of public procurement or heritage protection laws to meet deadlines. Concretely, thanks to orders, the executive could take adjustment measures or free itself, if necessary, from certain rules.

A similar tool was also used for the organization of the Paris Olympic Games. Adopted on March 26, 2018, this exceptional law allowed the government to accelerate the construction of the infrastructure promised to the IOC. It also provided for several exemptions to align French law with the requirements of the International Olympic Committee and to simplify certain procedures, notably those of public consultations.