The Constitutional Council charged by the executive with correcting the “immigration” law

2023-12-21 06:31:23
Prime Minister, Elisabeth Borne, at the Elysée, in Paris, December 20, 2023. LUDOVIC MARIN / AFP

Determined to display at all costs the adoption of the “immigration” bill before the Christmas holidays, the government therefore asked the deputies to vote on a text which it anticipated, even wished to be invalidated. As Emmanuel Macron admitted on Wednesday December 20: “Is it because there were articles which were not in conformity with our Constitution, that we had to say “we do not reach an agreement and therefore there is no text”? he asked on France 5. My answer is no. »

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While all eyes are on the National Assembly on Tuesday evening, the Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, proposes to the senators to adopt a text which includes measures “ manifestly and clearly contrary to the Constitution ». “But politics, believes the ministerit’s not being a lawyer before lawyers. » It will therefore be up to the Constitutional Council to “ do his job », he continues. In fact, it was seized on Wednesday by the President of the Republic, so that he could “rule on the conformity of all or part of this law”. A conformity that the Prime Minister, Elisabeth Borne, herself recognized as fragile.

If the legislator is not infallible, “ Parliament is still supposed to adopt laws that are not contrary to the Constitution », is surprised to the Monde the constitutionalist Didier Maus. “ I don’t see any other examples of a government knowingly passing a law even though it deems it “manifestly” contrary to the Constitution. », For his part, reacted magistrate Eric Halphen on the social network X.

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While the adoption of the bill provokes an open crisis within the presidential camp, the referral to the Constitutional Council appears to be the last resort to censor the harshest measures conceded to the leaders of the Les Républicains (LR) party. In this text there is “ things that I don’t like, but which are not against our values”, declared Emmanuel Macron, Wednesday morning, in the Council of Ministers. While affirming, in the evening, that this text contains “things that can shock people”, more “which in my eyes are effective”.

Closing a controversy

The opposition denounces the opportunism of this referral. “The Constitutional Council is not the washer of consciences”, reacted the boss of the Socialist Party (PS), Olivier Faure, while the left also seized the institution chaired by Laurent Fabius. For the constitutionalist Jean-Philippe Derosier, close to the PS, Emmanuel Macron seeks to “legitimize your law”. The Constitutional Council, he adds, is “ politically exploited, with consequences that could be dramatic for our republican order “. Censorship of certain measures “would allow the National Rally to say: you can see that our Constitution does not allow us to ensure the security of our fellow citizens”, apprehends the lawyer, while the National Rally (RN) and LR ask to modify the Constitution on immigration issues.

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