2023-12-15 14:53:23
Not content with having contributed to the vote on the motion to reject the immigration bill in the National Assembly on Monday, December 11, the National Rally is determined to deal a new blow to the government. Its objective: to deprive the executive of any possibility of resorting to article 49.3… until next July! A decision from the Constitutional Council on the subject is expected this Thursday afternoon, December 14.
On November 16, Marine Le Pen, on behalf of her parliamentary group, contacted the Constitutional Council for this purpose. To justify her request, the finalist in the last presidential election believes that the government has burned out its cartridges. “The majority, hypothetically, only has three types of 49.3 per year,” recalls Jean-Jacques Urvoas, former Minister of Justice and professor of public law at the University of Western Brittany. For budgetary texts, he can use 49.3 as many times as he wishes. Beyond that, it has a 49.3 in ordinary session and another in extraordinary session.
Last September, the government identified two texts likely to require 49.3 in ordinary session: the immigration bill and the public finance programming law. The latter, in fact, is not considered a budgetary text. At the end of September, the government therefore opened an extraordinary session to take responsibility in this context.
The debate comes from the fact that on second reading, Élisabeth Borne again triggered 49.3… except that we were then in ordinary session. “The government says that it is the same 49.3, since it is the same text. They may be right, but we can also point out that they did not use it during the same session,” continues Jean-Jacques Urvoas, who adds that he does not remember such a precedent.
On the Macronie side, we say we are “serene”
If an influential Macronist MP said he was “calm” a few days ago and “certain that the government will win its case”, the former Minister of Justice still believes that the government has shown a certain audacity. The decision of the Sages will necessarily change the plans of the executive.
If the Constitutional Council agrees with him, his task will be greatly facilitated in the months to come. He could very well convene five extraordinary two-day sessions for as many texts next July and activate as many 49.3 three months later. If he loses, then he will no longer be able to use 49.3 for seven months. The government would lose a good deal on immigration, even if it says it is doing everything possible not to resort to it.
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