France's highest constitutional authority rejected more than a third of articles in a contentious immigration bill adopted under pressure from the right, in a decision issued on on Thursday, January 25. The Constitutional Council ruling notably rejected measures toughening access to social benefits and family reunification, as well as the introduction of immigration quotas set by Parliament.
The Council partially or totally rejected 32 articles out of 86 on procedural grounds – ruling that the amendments adopted by Parliament were unrelated to the government's bill, or "legislative cavaliers." A further three articles were rejected on the grounds that they were unconstitutional themselves.
The scrapped measures include restrictions to family reunification, access to certain social benefits for non-EU citizens, and the automatic obtention of French citizenship for people who were born and grew up in France. The Council also rejected articles pertaining to student visas and special visas issued for health reasons.
After the Council's decision, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin said the Constitutional Council had "validated the whole of the government's text," noting that most of the failed measures were rejected for procedural reasons.
The chairman of the far-right Rassemblement National party, Jordan Bardella, denounced, as expected, a "power grab by the judges, with the support of the president [Emmanuel Macron]." He added: "The only solution is a referendum on immigration." Eric Ciotti, the leader of the right-wing Les Républicains opposition party which struck a deal with the government to pass a hardened version of the bill, said the Council had "judged based on politics rather than on law." He called for a constitutional reform.
The nine members of the Council had been asked to rule on whether the highly divisive text, which caused splits inside President Emmanuel Macron's coalition, was in conformity with the Constitution. Darmanin, who championed the bill, had admitted that several provisions were "manifestly and clearly contrary to the Constitution."
Some political observers accused Macron of seeking to pass the buck onto the Constitutional Council. The Constitutional Council registered its displeasure, its president Laurent Fabius declaring it is not "a chamber of appeal against the choices made by Parliament."
Macron also defended the legislation, saying it was needed to reduce illegal immigration but also to facilitate the integration of documented arrivals. On December 20, the day after the vote, the head of state declared that it was "the shield we were missing." He rejected the idea that the law would enshrine a "national preference" demanded by the RN. But Marine Le Pen claimed it was an "ideological victory."
Dozens of NGOs slammed what they described as potentially the "most regressive" immigration law in decades. Trade unions and associations called for fresh protests on Thursday, after tens of thousands of people took to the streets across the country at the weekend.
Translation of an original article published in French on lemonde.fr; the publisher may only be liable for the French version.