2023-10-19 10:00:07
Expected and trivialized as much as possible by the government, the triggering of article 49.3 of the Constitution to adopt the revenue section of the finance bill for 2024, Wednesday October 18, nevertheless constitutes a revealing : French democracy is not in the best shape to face the challenges of the moment.
The budget, and all the questions that arise from it each year, has very direct consequences on the lives of the French because it touches on subjects such as purchasing power, housing, taxes, spending, debt. However, the way in which the debates took place, or rather did not take place, shows the extent to which the national representation has difficulty dealing seriously with these themes, simply by failing to listen to each other. The thirteenth 49.3 triggered since the start of Emmanuel Macron’s second five-year term marks a collective failure.
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As growth slows and debt becomes a matter of concern again, the government had only one objective: to put an end to the ordeal as quickly as possible. For the first time in the history of the Fifth Republic, he failed to have the revenue side of his text adopted in the law committee. To allow the debate to continue in public session was to take the risk of weakening the crest line that he defends for a result known in advance. Whatever the concessions, no opposition group would have lent him a hand since all had announced that they would vote against. The decision came very early, after the general discussion and before the examination of the amendments in public session.
Sling without consequences
The “denial of democracy” denounced on the benches of the right as well as those of the left is both real and induced by the trivialization of the use of 49.3. From the moment everyone realizes that the discussion will end with a commitment to responsibility from the government followed by the tabling of motions of censure doomed to failure, the discussion only becomes more conflictual. In the Finance Committee, the oppositions had only one objective: to deconstruct the government’s copy to assert their own credo focused on tax increases, or on the contrary, on reductions.
In the majority, the small satellite parties did not hesitate to vote, with the opposition, on amendments that the government did not want. They wanted to exist but knew however that their rebellion would be without consequence since everything would end with a commitment of responsibility.
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From this role-playing game, no one comes out a winner. The Prime Minister, Elisabeth Borne, is on the verge of becoming the “lady of 49.3”, a thankless role which weakens her stature at a time when two members of her government, Gérald Darmanin and Gabriel Attal, are stepping into the spotlight.
The oppositions fail to score points because they are incapable of uniting around a counter-budget. As much as the tabling of motions of censure caused some chills at the start of the legislature, their multiplication contributes to blunting their effect.
On Wednesday evening, the government announced that it was integrating 358 amendments into its initial project, including 43 chosen from among those defended by the so-called “republican arc” opposition groups.. Since the dialogue is not completely cut off, it would have been better, for everyone, if the concessions were negotiated in broad daylight, in a democratic debate worthy of the name.
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