They are maneuvering and intend to use their power – and the 61 deputies of their camp in the National Assembly – to pass their text. The three leaders of the Republicans, Eric Ciotti, at the head of LR, Olivier Marleix, president of the group in the National Assembly, and Bruno Retailleau, his counterpart in the Senate, present in the Journal du Dimanche to be published this Sunday their text on immigration. "We want to put an end to an uncontrolled situation," Ciotti said.
In addition to an amendment to the Constitution to "allow the holding of a referendum on French migration policy", contained in a first bill, LR sets out its principles and rules on the subject in a second. "The French expect an energetic recovery of immigration. The government tells us that it wants a text? Well, we offer him two! For us, it's that or nothing," says Olivier Marleix in the JDD.
Facilitating the expulsion of aliens
The Republicans propose the annual vote in Parliament of a law fixing the number of foreigners admitted to France for each reason. Added to this is a tightening of the obtaining of residence permits and the conditions for family reunification. State medical aid would be reformed to be less generous, while foreigners would only have access to social protection and benefits after five years of residence in France.
Beyond the conditions of stay in France, LR also wants to facilitate the expulsion of foreigners, especially for those sentenced to at least one year in prison. The bill also includes a "presumption of majority" when an unaccompanied minor refuses a bone test (which would make it possible to see if the foreigner is a minor or an adult, which differentiates his care). The right of the soil would also not be "granted" to a child if his foreign parents were in an irregular situation at the time of his birth, while it would simply be "suppressed" in Mayotte.
It remains to be seen what the government, which is counting on LR to pass a text on immigration, will say. Initially postponed, Elisabeth Borne finally announced "consultations" to present a text "in July". "We will table the texts together this week. Then, we can put them on the agenda, especially of the Senate, in the fall, as for the ordinary text, "explains Bruno Retailleau in the JDD, seeming to want to do without these consultations.