Assuring that it was not a government “strategy”, the State recognized, this Thursday, “difficulties” in the access of foreigners to prefectures, by the voice
the interministerial delegate responsible for the reception and integration of refugees (Diair).
The difficulties in making appointments and accessing the prefectures, in particular to renew residence permits, have been the subject of strong protests and multiple legal actions for months on the part of associations as well as nationals. foreigners. The latter denounce administrative obstacles condemning them to live illegally.
An “exceptional” recruitment of 250 people
“Yes, we have difficulties today in making appointments, for reasons that do not relate to a strategy to prevent people from accessing counters”, but rather “the functioning of the prefectures”, or the coronavirus pandemic, explained the Diair, Alain Régnier, heard by the National Assembly’s commission of inquiry on migration. “We work on it on a daily basis,” added the prefect.
In some departments, in particular in Ile-de-France where most of the summary proceedings have been filed before administrative tribunals on the subject in recent months, “difficulties can cause someone to lose a professional opportunity since they do not has not obtained the appointment to renew the title and that the employer is obliged to terminate his contract, ”he still admitted.
In a report published at the end of May, two members of the majority, Stella Dupont (LREM) and Jean-Noël Barrot (MoDem), called for the “exceptional” recruitment of 250 contract workers in the prefectures to “catch up on the backlog accumulated during the health crisis” of Covid-19 in the processing of applications for residence permits.