Over the past few weeks, rumors have been spreading TikTok the government of Michel Barnier is reportedly planning to charge French citizens who do not pay electricity 25 euros a month.income tax. The aim? To contribute to the “financial effort towards the national debt”.
On the social network, dozens of similar videos can be found, often with the same recording of a male voice beginning by stating “Prime Minister Michel Barnier has just confirmed it, so it’s official…”. According to these viral publications, the measure will come into force on January 1, 2025. If you see an “EFDN” levy [pour « effort financier à la dette nationale »] that’s what it’s all about,” the voiceover also states.
On TikTok, videos sometimes accumulate over a million views.
FAKE OFF
There is no measure providing for a 25-euro tax reserved for people who do not pay income tax. Michel Barnier has made no such statement. Such a measure simply does not exist.
Similarly, there is no such thing as a “financial contribution to the national debt”. 20 Minutes has been unable to find any trace of this term in government statements or texts. Nor does the acronym “EFDN” exist.
These “news” accounts that are proliferating on TikTok
According to our research, the first instances of this rumor appeared on the platform several months ago. The sound used in the majority of videos comes from a video posted on September 8 by a user
Most of the videos simply repeat the recording in question, sometimes adding a photo of Michel Barnier. For the time being, the rumor seems to be circulating almost exclusively on TikTok.
These viral videos are in fact characteristic of a type of content that is very present on the platform: “news” accounts that relay rumors and intoxications en masse. Often featuring the terms “info”, “France” or “news”, they regularly share completely unfounded or decontextualized news. In order to attract an audience, these rumors are all sensationalist or polemical in nature.
20 Minutes has already verified several of them, concerning a supposed ban on listening to music in the caror a a fine of 135 euros for parents who fail to send their child to school at the start of the school year. The favorite subjects of these accounts are alleged reforms or new laws affecting the purchasing power or freedom of the French.