It was no surprise that Elisabeth Borne showed up in the Hemicycle on Wednesday afternoon, November 30. While the Senate on Tuesday rejected the Social Security draft budget for 2023, the Prime Minister again initiated Article 49.3 of the Constitution in the National Assembly, this time on the whole text, in order to to reach a definitive adoption of the budget.
This is the seventh time since October that the government has used this constitutional weapon on a budget text, the fifth on the Social Security financing bill (PLFSS). Section 49.3 allows the executive to pass legislation directly without a vote. Its use is not limited within the framework of budgetary texts.
“Today, at the end of the examination of the text, and a few days from the end of the constitutional deadline, I regret again, as I have already done, that the positions have remained frozen. And that despite the advances, each opposition group has reaffirmed its desire to oppose the bill, whatever it contains, whatever it is”said the Prime Minister at the podium.
In a well-established political choreography, the leader of the deputies La France insoumise (LFI), Mathilde Panot, immediately announced the tabling of a seventh motion of censure on the part of her group against the government, which will join the other groups of the Nupes (socialist, communist and ecologist).
New motion of censure
“And 7! Seven 49.3 in six weeks (…) to force through the PLFSS and overcome hospital chaos and drug shortages”she wrote in particular on Twitterbefore justifying the filing of “ a seventh motion of censure to refuse that caregivers and users be trampled ».
The anger does not come only from the benches of the left of the National Assembly. The day before, the Senate, with a majority on the right, had approved by 264 against 65 a preliminary motion refusing to proceed to a new reading of the draft budget “in order to mark our differences in form and substance”, explained the centrist rapporteur Elisabeth Doineau.
“The systematic use by the government of the procedure defined in article 49 paragraph 3 of the Constitution will not allow the integration, in final reading, of new proposals of the Senate “, lamented the elected officials. They were annoyed that the government had “swept away” their amendments “iconic”, which included in particular that on the postponement of the retirement age to 64, which they had had adopted at first reading.
The Prime Minister had triggered the 49.3 procedure for the sixth time on Friday, November 25 in the National Assembly, in order to have the component adopted. ” expenses “ of the PLFSS. For the sixth time again, the “rebellious” deputies had tabled a motion of censure against the government, which was once again rejected on Monday.
This Social Security financing bill anticipates in particular a sharp drop in the deficit to 7.2 billion euros in 2023 (17.8 billion this year), thanks to the melting of the bill linked to Covid-19. The text provides in particular for measures on prevention, medical deserts, or even savings for biology laboratories.