For opponents of pension reform, this is a first parliamentary hurdle crossed. The chairman of the finance committee Eric Coquerel (LFI) ruled this Tuesday, May 30 admissible the bill aimed at repealing the pension reform.
Carried by the group Libertés, Indépendants, Outre-mer et Territoires (Liot), this will be examined on Wednesday in committee and on June 8 in the hemicycle. The object of a standoff between the presidential camp and the coalition opponents to the postponement of the retirement age, the text of the law embarrasses the majority who are already planning to sabotage it. The executive was quick to react. At the end of the Council of Ministers, government spokesman Olivier Véran judged that the PPL was not “unconstitutional”. “With this decisionalso criticized the Minister for Relations with Parliament, Franck Riester, the chairman of the finance committee frees himself from the law and from his position for political reasons.”
In front of the press, Eric Coquerel detailed his argument according to which the bill does not contravene article 40 of the Constitution, which provides that parliamentary initiatives are not admissible if they aggravate public charges. “I don’t make decisions about anything”argued the LFI deputy for Seine-Saint-Denis, reporting having suffered “pressures” coming from the executive in recent days. “I saw the Prime Minister turn into a constitutionalist”, he lamented. On May 17, Elisabeth Borne had judged “unconstitutional” the Liot bill. “I think I have solid legal arguments that are based on case law”defended his side Coquerel.
‘A form of relief’
The Chairman of the Finance Committee relies primarily on “commonly accepted practice” and the “consistent case law” concerning bills creating charges. Technical and relating to parliamentary subtleties, Coquerel’s argument is based on reading “soft” what the office of the Assembly generally does with article 40. Clearly, the latter gives free rein to the legislative proposals of the deputies.
Another point in the argument of the rebellious deputy, the financial compensation necessary for the creation of a charge, in accordance with article 40. Referred to as the “pledge”, the compensation is generally made on tobacco taxes. According to Coquerel, the charges induced by the PPL Liot, “particularly uncertain”, amounted to 11.5 billion euros. The “pledge” on tobacco can, for its part, “support the weight of a proposal up to 14.4 billion euros”, notes MP LFI. Enough to bring the text of the Liot group into the nails of the Constitution.
During its weekly press conference, the Liot group welcomed Eric Coquerel’s decision. “It’s not a surprise, but a form of relief”commented the deputy of the North, Benjamin Saint-Huile, when the president of the group, Bertrand Pancher, quoted de Gaulle: “A Constitution is a spirit, institutions and a practice.” “The practicecompleted the elected representative of the Meuse, it is not to accumulate all the procedures to prevent Parliament from deciding.
“Partisan and politician” decision for the majority
In a press release, the three majority groups – Renaissance, Modem and Horizons – denounced a decision “partisan and politician” of the Chairman of the Finance Committee. “The inadmissibility of the Liot group’s bill is however beyond doubtnote the three group presidents, Aurore Bergé, Jean-Paul Mattei and Laurent Marcangeli. It undeniably leads to an annual burden on public finances of 7.9 billion euros by 2027 and 15 billion euros in 2023. Their absurd financing solution would therefore be to ask the French to smoke twice as much every year and for the next twenty years!”
The general rapporteur of the finance committee, Jean-René Cazeneuve, deputy (Renaissance) of Gers, also gritted against a decision “unfounded in law, in disrespect of our Constitution and all the jurisprudence relating to financial admissibility”. Taken from behind, the Macronist deputies are now relying on Yaël Braun-Pivet. The President of the Assembly has already ruled the PPL Liot inadmissible. “Article 40 is to be interpreted strictlyassured the elected official of Yvelines this Tuesday on France 2. Does it create a charge or not. There is no need for a political interpretation.”
Offended by the timing that Coquerel chose to decide – the day before the examination of the text in committee – and his method – the rebellious deputy split from a Sunday platform in the world to present his point of view -, Braun-Pivet now excludes a vote of the deputies on the text. “I have only one compass, our Constitution, the rule of law, the regulations of the National Assemblyshe warned on Tuesday. There is nothing more democratic than enforcing the law.” Contrary to what she has been saying behind the scenes in recent days, the President of the Palais-Bourbon could thus convene, in session, on June 8, a new office in order to re-judge the admissibility of the PPL – the text has already been deemed admissible by this same office when it was filed in April.
“Sick Rumors”
The next step in the course of the bill will be played out on Wednesday morning, during its examination by the Social Affairs Committee. The presidential coalition, which has 32 seats there (out of 72), could engage in parliamentary grub to torpedo the text. Article 1, which includes the cancellation of the postponement of the age to 64, could thus be deleted by the deputies. For this coup, the Macronist deputies will have to count on the support of some of the 8 Les Républicains deputies who are members of the commission. The group’s president, Olivier Marleix, assured that a “majority of deputies [LR] do not want to participate in this joke that is this bill”.
Evoking “sick rumors” on these probable “manoeuvres”the deputy (Liot) of the Marne Charles de Courson has for his part planned to question the Prime Minister this Tuesday afternoon during questions to the government, in order to obtain a “clarification of the government’s position”.
Update 1:27 p.m.: Added several reactions and context items.