Elisabeth Borne asked Tuesday evening the Minister of the Interior Gerald Darmanin to relaunch "consultations" to present "in July" a draft law on immigration in the Council of Ministers, for a parliamentary examination in the fall, announced the entourage of the Prime Minister, confirming information from Le Figaro.

This is yet another U-turn on the part of the executive. The head of government had indeed said on 26th April, when presenting her roadmap for the continuation of the five-year term after the pension crisis, that there was currently "no majority to vote for such a text", which she had therefore postponed the presentation to the autumn.

The government is trying to keep the initiative

In any case, even with this new boost, a possible reform would not be debated before the autumn. But this allows the government to try to keep the initiative on this explosive subject while on the right, the Republicans have announced their intention to table two bills by the summer.

During a meeting in Matignon on Tuesday evening, "the Prime Minister asked Gérald Darmanin, in constant contact with Olivier Dussopt and Franck Riester", the Ministers of Labour and Relations with Parliament, "to conduct consultations in the coming weeks to propose a strategy to adopt effective measures that can bring together the presidential majority", was explained in the entourage of Elisabeth Borne. "These consultations will last one month. The aim is to introduce a bill in July for consideration in Parliament in the autumn," it added.

"Hundred Days" Priority

The Minister of the Interior had already presented a text, and its examination was initially scheduled for the end of March in the Senate. But President Emmanuel Macron had first announced his postponement and assured that it would be divided into several texts, before going back on these remarks by pleading for a great law in "a single text", "effective and fair".

In mid-April, in front of his troops gathered at the Elysee, the head of state had even made it one of the priorities of the "hundred days" he decreed to relaunch his five-year term. "If we do not do immigration and work" before July 14, he had hammered according to participants, "it means that we will not do it" at all. But its Prime Minister had recorded the political deadlock in the following days.

  • Immigration Act
  • Politics
  • Immigration
  • Government
  • Elisabeth Borne
  • Gerald Darmanin