France's lower house of parliament on Tuesday passed a government bill tightening rules for immigration, despite a rebellion within the ranks of President Emmanuel Macron's governing party after it was backed by the far right.
Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin told reporters that the "strong text" had been adopted with a sufficiently large majority of 349 for and 186 against, and that the far-right votes in favour were not needed for it to pass. The upper-house Senate had earlier also passed the legislation.
Darmanin, who championed the bill, praised “an important text which will protect the French" but also allow 7,000 to 10,000 undocumented migrant workers a year to get residency permits and fill jobs in sectors that have difficulty hiring.
"We will at last be able to expel foreign offenders of our territory but also integrate all those who work in our restaurants, in the agriculture sector,” Darmanin said.
Conservative lawmaker Eric Ciotti, president of The Republicans party, said the compromise text features provisions to reduce the number of migrants coming to France, notably by limiting foreigners' access to social benefits.
Macron's centrist government doesn’t have a majority in parliament, and opposition lawmakers last week rejected the bill without debating it in the lower house, the National Assembly. In turn, the government sought a compromise with Republicans lawmakers, who pushed for a hard-line approach.
Many saw the negotiations as a sign of a shift to the right by Macron’s government.
A commission composed of seven senators and seven lawmakers from the National Assembly formally approved the revised legislation. It requires approval from both houses of parliament, and a vote was scheduled for late Tuesday.
Far-right lawmaker Marine Le Pen said her National Rally party would vote for the bill. She described the legislation as an ”ideological victory” because it includes measures promoted by her party. It's a “very small step, much remains to be done,” Le Pen added.
Advocacy organizations have criticized the bill as a threat to the rights of migrants.
Amnesty International France said on X, formerly known as Twitter, that “all conditions are met for a law that is more detrimental than ever to the rights of people living in exile.”
A statement signed by over 40 French groups that advocate for migrants' rights urged lawmakers to reject the bill, which they said “flouts fundamental rights.”
(France 24 with AFP and AP)
