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Emmanuel Macron’s government was thrown into crisis on Tuesday as the French president’s centrist alliance splintered and several of his ministers threatened to resign ahead of a crucial parliamentary vote on a toughened version of a proposed immigration reform.
Macron called an emergency meeting at the Elysée palace with prime minister Élisabeth Borne and interior minister Gérald Darmanin just hours before the crunch vote in the National Assembly.
His move came after 10 days of drama during which the government lost control of its immigration reform, in the latest sign of how Macron can no longer impose his legislative priorities now that his centrist alliance does not have a parliamentary majority.
Macron’s government, under pressure from far-right leader Marine Le Pen and sceptical public opinion, initially touted its reform as a “balanced” one that would fix longstanding problems.
It proposed a draft immigration law that would harden aspects of the asylum system for migrants, while also including a business-friendly measure to give work permits to undocumented people employed in sectors with labour shortages.
But the reform crystallised opposition across the political spectrum, and in a bid to save the reform, the government toughened its plans.
On Tuesday afternoon Le Pen performed a U-turn and ordered her 88 MPs to vote for the stricter version of the immigration law despite slamming it as too lax only days ago.
Her move put the government on the back foot when it had hammered out a compromise in a cross-party parliamentary committee after negotiations with the conservative Les Républicains.
“If in power, we would go further and act more effectively, but this law is on the right track,” said Le Pen.
Her shift piled pressure on MPs in Macron’s centrist alliance in parliament, some of whom have left-leaning beliefs on immigration.
Speaking on BFMTV, Mohamed Laqhila, an MP from the centrist Modem party allied with Macron, called for the president to call off the parliamentary vote, saying: “I will vote against this law.”
Three members of the government, health minister Aurélien Rousseau, higher education minister Sylvie Retailleau, and housing minister Patrice Vergriete, told Borne they were considering resigning.
A handful of other left-leaning ministers, including transport minister Clément Beaune, were also said to be concerned, according to Agence France-Presse.
The latest version of the law retains proposals to allow undocumented workers to apply for work permits if they are in sectors like healthcare or construction that are struggling with labour shortages.
But rightwing MPs also added new provisions that Macron’s government had not proposed, such as annual quotas for migrants and a requirement for foreigners to be in France for as long as five years before they are eligible for anti-poverty programmes such as housing subsidies.
“There is a political accord that does not satisfy everyone completely, but allows us to agree on one thing: the essential need to protect the French public,” said Darmanin.
The Senate, the upper house of parliament, voted 214 to 114 to approve the law on Tuesday evening. The National Assembly, the lower house, was scheduled to vote later.
Emily Foster is a globe-trotting journalist based in the UK. Her articles offer readers a global perspective on international events, exploring complex geopolitical issues and providing a nuanced view of the world’s most pressing challenges.
