A decree regulating the management of wholesale markets should be released in the forthcoming weeks. This is good news for authorities and tenants, and in my opinion, particularly those in Lyon.

The text is now under the scrutiny of the Council of State, the second most powerful body in the country, for validation.

This textual content is crucial. Without it, the bill passed last year could not be implemented. As you would expect, many people have had a very close look. Basically, as with the document that the French people just snubbed on the European constitution, the contents include almost everything that has already been explained over the years, and covers especially the potential for private companies to run markets.

But not quite everything. Some points remain sensitive and once more the protected perimeter (now diplomatically renamed perimeter of reference) of the market causes controversy. The text gives the right to towns within the perimeter to ask the state to be excluded from regulations.

Although France is actively promoting the devolution of power to its districts, this seems odd. Following this guideline could take away from the very substance of the perimeter. A company could choose to settle in a town outside the perimeter but close to the market and profit from the customer flow. In the past, derogation to the perimeter was sometimes accepted but the company had to fulfil certain requirements in exchange. This has disappeared from the new text. For wholesalers and authorities it is a question of remaining competitive.

Someone who knows what’s what told me these points were a real “casus belli”. Let’s say some good lobbying from those wishing the perimeter to disappear has been at work here.

But at this stage this is just a project of text: The council of state’s wise men have the opportunity to change it. It’s a fair bet there will be some whispered discussions in the corridors in the next few weeks.