The French parliament has scrapped the controversial immigration law with which the French government wanted to curb illegal migration on the one hand and allow migrants to integrate in France on the other. A motion to reject the law, submitted by left-wing parliamentarians, received a narrow majority.
Le Parisien calls the motion, which was tabled and approved before anyone had the chance to debate the proposal, “a very serious political defeat” for French President Emmanuel Macron and his government. Before the vote, the government hoped to get the center-right Les Républicains behind it, but they also supported the motion to reject.
‘Regularized’
The bill, which consists of 27 articles, aims to bring immigration in France under control and ensure that current migrants in France are better integrated into the labor market. For example, the bill would “regularize” migrants who work without papers, so that they can work in sectors with labor shortages, among other things. Migrants who commit crimes should be deported more quickly.
There was criticism from both the right and left of the bill, which was submitted by, among others, the French Minister of the Interior Gérald Darmanin. His position is being questioned by several parliamentarians after the vote. However, it is not completely excluded that the law will pass: the Senate can consider it again or a special parliamentary committee can look at it again.
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