Former Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier (LR), cited as a possible 2022 presidential candidate, suggested on Sunday a "
moratorium
" on immigration, a proposal also put forward by far-right candidate Marine Le Pen.
To read also: Michel Barnier: "Europe is not immune to a new earthquake"
"
We must decide in this country a moratorium on immigration
", from three to five years, to "
take the time to check, evaluate, if necessary to change, the procedures and the practices
", declared the former Minister on the Grand Jury for RTL, LCI and
Le Figaro
. "
There are links
" between immigration and "
the terrorist networks which use migratory flows, which infiltrate them
", he argued, even if he "does
not think that all immigrants, and in particular those who try to cross the Mediterranean to reach a better future are potential terrorists or potential delinquents
”.
He also specified on immigration "
that in the end it will be necessary to change the Constitution on certain points, in particular to have more leeway in relation to European texts or regulations
". However, "
we will always welcome students
" and "
we must respect
" the right to asylum, he said. The former Minister (Agriculture and Foreign Affairs) of Jacques Chirac and Nicolas Sarkozy also judged that there were "
risks of
social
explosions
" in France and that "
what is said
" in a recent military forum "
deserved attention
”,“
because there are real and serious fractures, particularly on the issue of
immigration ”.
Solitary exercise of power
Asked about the proximity of his proposals to those of Marine Le Pen, who also wants a moratorium on immigration to reduce it to 10,000 entries per year, Michel Barnier assured that he "
did not need Ms. Le Pen to listen to and understand the problems of the French and to provide solutions
”.
Regarding the Islamic veil, which Marine Le Pen wants to ban in all public space, the former European commissioner ruled "
that we should clearly reaffirm that religious symbols cannot enter public space
". In an allusion to Emmanuel Macron, he also warned against "
the solitary exercise of power, the lack of confidence in ministers, local elected officials
" or unions, which "
can sometimes border (...) the arrogance
”.