The Constitutional Council, after examining 49 of the 86 articles of the immigration bill, largely censored the text, in a decision rendered Thursday January 25. In detail, 32 articles, or more than a third of the text, are subject to total or partial censorship “as ‘legislative riders'”, according to the decision of the Sages. They are judged to lack sufficient connection with the bill. Among the censored measures are: the tightening of access to social benefits, family reunification, or even the establishment of a “return deposit” for foreign students. Three other articles are partially or totally censored on the merits, including the establishment of migration quotas set by Parliament. Follow our live stream.
The majority divided by the text. In total, 27 of the 248 deputies of the presidential majority opposed the bill. Part of the left wing of the government, the Minister of Health, Aurélien Rousseau, resigned after the vote in December. Despite the storm, the government preferred to reach an agreement with the right and avoid a fiasco in the Assembly. The Head of State, however, decided to refer the matter to the Constitutional Council, effectively entrusting it with the role of political arbiter on an explosive text.