The bill from the Renaissance party of President Emmanuel Macron and the left-wing party La France Insoumise (LFI) has been passed by 337 votes in favor and 32 against.
It’s a compromise text, hoping to get Senate approval. That is essential for constitutional reform. The MPs of Les Républicains (LR) and the Rassemblement National (RN) were divided between for, against and abstaining. Marine Le Pen, RN faction leader, supported the text.
Mathilde Panot, leader of the LFI group, spoke of a “historic” vote. Parliament speaks to the world, our country speaks to the world. She dedicated the text to women in the United States, Poland and Hungary. After the vote, the LFI and Renaissance MPs stood up to applaud twice, while the LR and RN MPs remained seated.
Abortion was legalized in France in 1974. Since February, termination of pregnancy has been legally permitted up to fourteen weeks after conception, two weeks longer than before.
The bill came after the US Supreme Court decided to overturn the national right to abortion in the US and abortion rights were also severely restricted in Poland. The constitutional anchoring must prevent the right to abortion from coming under pressure in France as well.