Minister Françoise Gatel outlined on Tuesday, December 9, the details of a major decree aimed at reducing excessive norms burdening local authorities. Announced by Sébastien Lecornu, the text seeks to ease the administrative load on elected officials to boost territorial action. It follows a simplification initiative launched earlier in the year.
The notion of simplifying French administration is far from new. In the 1960s, Prime Minister Georges Pompidou told Jacques Chirac: “But stop bothering the French. There are too many laws, too many texts, too many regulations in this country! We're dying under them! Let them live a bit and you'll see everything will get better! Leave them in peace!” This outburst still echoes in the halls of power today.
Sébastien Lecornu, the current head of Matignon, has taken up the cause by launching a hunt for superfluous norms, especially those impacting local elected officials. At the closing of the mayors' congress on November 20, he stated: “I want the start of the next municipal term to happen with the utmost simplicity.” He then promised a “mega decree” by Christmas to prune “surreal” rules that hinder local authorities.
On Tuesday, December 9, Minister for Territorial Planning and Decentralization Françoise Gatel revealed the decree's outlines during a meeting at the Hôtel de Roquelaure, her ministry's headquarters. This new “Roquelaure of simplification” follows a similar initiative launched in April by her predecessor, François Rebsamen, who served from December 2024 to October 2025. Gatel emphasized: “We have done what few states dare to do, collectively recognizing that our normative corpus has accumulated to the point of obstructing elected officials' actions and territorial dynamics.”
The decree aims to cut into an array of deemed excessive norms, allowing local authorities to focus on priorities without unnecessary bureaucracy. It represents a key step in the government's efforts to modernize local administration, responding to longstanding complaints from mayors and officials about regulatory complexity.