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The law was one of the cornerstones of President Emmanuel Macron’s second-term reform agenda, but pressure from the right led to it being made much stricter than originally intended, and its passage sparked an internal revolt within the ruling party.
The Council announced that it had declared 32 of the law’s 86 articles unconstitutional in whole or in part. In principle, articles that were formulated according to the demands of right-wing parties are recognized as unconstitutional.
Macron and MPs called on the council to evaluate the law, which was passed last year after a long and painful debate.
Measures rejected by the Council include those that make it harder for migrants to bring family members to France and limit their access to social benefits. The introduction of immigration quotas was also rejected.
The law also strengthens France’s ability to deport foreigners deemed undesirable.
Opponents of the law protested in front of the Constitutional Council building opposite the Louvre in central Paris before the Constitutional Council’s decision was announced. More protests were planned and the Paris police were on heightened alert.
Demonstrators accused the government of giving in to pressure from Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Union (RN) party. Around 75,000 people protested across France on Sunday, calling on Macron not to sign the controversial law.
Interior Minister Geralds Darmanen, who previously claimed that some articles of the law were “clearly in contradiction to the constitution,” called the Constitutional Council’s decision a victory for the government.
“The Constitutional Council has approved the government text,” writes Darmanen on the social networking site “X”.
Meanwhile, the leader of the RN, Jordan Baradella, declared that it was a “coup of judges with the support of the president.”
He added that the only way out was to hold a referendum on immigration law.
The leader of the conservative Republican Party, Eric Sjoti, also announced that the nine members of the Constitutional Council made the decision based on political considerations and not in accordance with the law.
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