France National Assembly rejects no-confidence vote

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
19 Dec 2023 08:20

The French National Assembly announces the rejection of a vote of no confidence presented by the left-wing La France Insoumise party.

Far-left parliament members react after a vote at the French National Assembly in Paris on Monday, December 1, 2023. (AP)

The French National Assembly, the lower house of parliament, announced that it had dismissed a vote of no confidence proposed by the left-wing La France Insoumise party and approved the 2024 draft state budget, Le Figaro Politique reported.

"Due to the fact that no vote of no confidence was passed, Part 2 and the entire finance bill are considered adopted in a new reading, applying Article 49.3 of the constitution," the National Assembly said in a post on X, adding that only 110 legislators endorsed the motion of no confidence, falling short of the 289 needed for approval.

✅ #PLF2024 | Aucune motion de censure n'étant adoptée, la 2nde partie et l'ensemble du projet de loi de finances pour 2024 sont considérés comme adoptés en nouvelle lecture, en application de l’article 49.3 de la Constitution.
➡️ https://t.co/69fF33TKeN #DirectAN https://t.co/SxQu7L49KJ
— Assemblée nationale (@AssembleeNat) December 18, 2023

Dive deeper

Recently, French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne utilized Article 49.3 for the 22nd occasion to commence the procedure of enacting France's 2024 budget legislation without undergoing a parliamentary vote.

Last Monday, the French parliament rejected a key immigration proposal from President Emmanuel Macron's administration, leading the prominent Interior Minister to tender his resignation due to the perceived "failure."

At the time, President Macron declined Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin's resignation and instructed him to explore alternative strategies to overcome the impasse and advance the contentious immigration bill. The National Assembly's lower house dealt a significant blow to the government by adopting a motion to dismiss the immigration bill without engaging in any debates.

Initially presented by Macron's centrist government, the immigration bill featured a combination of measures to increase the deportation of undocumented individuals and enhance the integration of migrants. However, as it progressed through the right-controlled Senate, the focus of the bill shifted more toward enforcement.

Interior Minister Darmanin defended the bill during his address at the National Assembly, emphasizing its provisions that tighten restrictions on migrants' ability to bring family members into France, birthright citizenship, and access to welfare benefits. Despite Darmanin's appeals, the National Assembly, by a vote of 270 to 265, supported the motion to reject the bill proposed by the Greens.

The decision marks the suspension of the scrutiny of the approximately 2,600 suggested amendments to the legislation.