Macron insists new law will fix France’s festering ‘immigration problem’

Emmanuel Macron insisted his landmark immigration Bill that has split his government would help fix France’s festering “immigration problem” and stop the hard-Right from getting into power.

In a combative two-hour broadcast from the Elysée, the centrist French president denied that the tough law passed on Tuesday night was an “ideological victory” for Marine Le Pen’s National Rally, which backed the Bill in a last-minute ploy that some called “the kiss of death”.

‌Quite to the contrary, he said to stop Ms Le Pen’s party being elected to government “we need to address the problems that they feed on”.

The immigration Bill comes six months before European Parliament elections in which Ms Le Pen’s party is currently polling to come first.

With European sentiment hardening on immigration, the EU on Wednesday agreed to an overhaul of its asylum laws that includes more border detention centres and speedier deportations.

‌In the interview on Wednesday, Mr Macron said that while France was not “overrun” by illegal immigration, one had to acknowledge that failing to get a handle on the “problem” led to a “loss of control of who we are”.

‌The Bill was “a shield that we needed”, he said of the law that sparked the resignation of his health minister, Aurelien Rousseau.
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An initial version of the Bill was voted down last week only to be approved in a tougher form on Tuesday night.

‌The government passed the law thanks to a last-minute pledge not to enact the legislation without relying on support from the National Rally. While it did not need Le Pen MPs’ support to pass the Bill, it would have failed if they had voted against it.

‌Some called it a Pyrrhic victory for the French president as it left deep scars in his centrist majority; around a quarter of the 251 MPs in Macron’s camp voted against the Bill or abstained.

‌He said the legislation was essential to offer “efficient” and “realistic” solutions that were backed by a large majority of the French.

According to an Elabe poll out on Wednesday, some 70 per cent of French people backed the Bill. However, an ever higher amount - 73 per cent - said it had indeed been “inspired” by ideas from Ms Le Pen’s National Rally.

A key part of the new French immigration law will now see social security benefits for foreigners conditional on being in France for at least five years, or 30 months for those who have jobs, echoing some of the National Rally’s long-time campaign lines.

It also removes automatic citizenship for foreign children born in France. They must formally ask for it between the ages of 16 and 18.

Backlash

‌The French Left argues such measures pander to Ms Le Pen who claimed the legislation had taken on board her calls for “national preference” by toughening foreigners’ rights to state welfare benefits.

‌Left-leaning leaders of 32 of France’s départements, or counties, said they would refuse to implement the new restrictive welfare rules.

‌François Hollande, France’s former Socialist president, said: “If you keep playing with the ideas of the [far Right], you give it centre-stage.”

Mr Macron denied betraying Left-leaning voters who helped him secure a second term, pointing out that he had upheld a key measure that would allow illegal immigrants in work to apply for stay permits unless they have a criminal record.

He said: ‌“All the good souls who explain to me that what you’re doing isn’t right are all the people who have governed the country for 40 years and who have done what?”

‌“Have they resolved mass unemployment? Have they resolved deindustrialisation? Have they resolved the problems of integration, have they resolved the problems of immigration and crime? No.”

‌“What has given rise to extremes? All of the above.”

‌Analysts said the rebels in Mr Macron’s party could further weaken his hold on parliament, where he lacks an absolute majority, and complicate the rest of his five-year mandate.

‌He denied this, saying that his government was “learning” to live with a lack of absolute majority in parliament and despite this had already passed the two flagship reforms of his second term - pension reform and now the immigration law.

He said he had no intention of becoming a lame duck.

‌“I haven’t finished the job as I would like to reassure people I still have three years before me and I don’t intend to stop there,” he said.

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