Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK

POLITICS

France’s PM unveils plan to prevent more riots

Following the rioting that rocked French towns and cities in June, Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne has unveiled her plan to tackle urban unrest, including military schools and compulsory courses for parents whose children cause trouble.

Published: 26 October 2023 18:49 CEST
Updated: 27 October 2023 08:45 CEST
France's PM unveils plan to prevent more riots
French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne delivers a speech to present security measures in response to the urban riots in June. Photo by Thomas SAMSON / POOL / AFP

In late June, France saw almost a week of nightly rioting in which buildings and cars were set ablaze, stores looted and young people engaged in running battles with the police.

The riots followed the death of a 17-year-old boy in a police traffic stop – and the emergence of a video that revealed that police officers had lied about what happened.

On Thursday PM Elisabeth Borne – speaking to an audience of local mayors – unveiled plans to tackle the violence including ‘military’ schools, tougher penalties for the parents of delinquent teenagers and a €100 million fund to repair the damage caused during the riots. 

Because many of the June rioters were very young – three quarters of those arrested were under 25 and a fifth were still in school – the focus has fallen on parents and schools.

Borne announced the creation of “parenting courses” for parents whose children persistently cause trouble, as well as community service sentences for parents who have “failed in their educational duties”. Parents would also be financially liable for damage caused by their children.

“When a minor has caused damage, we must ensure that both parents are financially responsible for the damage caused, whether they are together or not, whether they live with the child or not,” she said.

In France, under 18s are very rarely jailed, but they can be sent to residential schools – Borne announced that she is considering changing the law to allow young people to be placed in residential schools run by “the judicial youth protection services”.

She also spoke of supervision by “military personnel” – although provided no concrete details. 

Borne announced that Forces d’action républicaine (republican action forces) will be deployed in troubled areas – a combined team including police and magistrates but also social workers and healthcare staff that can work with troubled families to restore order and provide help where needed. 

They will be deployed at the request of local authorities.

Her speech also announced

  • In cases where a curfew is imposed by local authorities – as several areas did during the riots – the maximum penalty for breaking the curfew will be raised from €150 to €750. 
  • The time spent on civics education at collège (secondary school) level will be doubled, while schools can reopen in August for pupils who are having difficulties.
  • Municipal police – a lower level of police who do not have powers of arrest – will be given extra powers

Borne also revealed that of the rioters arrested, three quarters were under the age of 25, and a fifth were still in school.

She added that three quarters of them were born in France, one third had not finished school and the children of single-parent families were “strongly represented”. 

She said: “This indicated a worrying normalisation of violence and a more general breakdown of authority.”

Member comments

  1. I don’t believe the military is trained or interested in rehabilitating delinquent youth – is that really the solution for disaffected youth? Entrusting these children to the military is a recipe for mistreatment and abuse. Sending delinquents to a school where they can receive the structure and attention to become good, productive citizens – whether a military school or otherwise – is a better solution.

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.
For members

POLITICS

What does the new government mean for foreigners in France?

France at last has a new government and one of its four main aims is to "control immigration and promote integration" - so what is this likely to mean for foreigners in France, or those hoping to move here some day?

Published: 20 September 2024 10:36 CEST
What does the new government mean for foreigners in France?

After two weeks of intense negotiation, on Thursday evening newly-appointed prime minister Michel Barnier announced that he had succeeded in forming a government.

 He also laid out his four main priorities;

  • Improve the standard of living for the French and the workings of public services, especially schools and healthcare
  • Guarantee security, control immigration and improve integration
  • Encourage businesses and agriculture and build upon the economic attractiveness of France
  • Get public finances under control and reduce debt

He is set to give his Discours de politique générale on October 1st – this is the traditional speech that a prime minister makes laying out the main policy aims of their government.

So what is this likely to mean for foreigners living in France?

Obviously some of these things will have the same effect on foreigners as any other residents of France, since we all use the same healthcare and education systems.

The first challenge for the new government will be a budget that, as Barnier says, “gets public finances under control”. France is facing a ballooning deficit and the threat of a downgrade from ratings agencies if it cannot get spending under control.

Barnier said earlier in the week that he is “discovering that the country’s budgetary situation is very serious” – most people interpreted this as preparing to announce tax hikes.

No details of these plans have been released, but it is thought likely that extra taxes will be on business and the super-rich rather than any increase in income tax or VAT.

Emmanuel Macron’s centrist Renaissance group briefed the press that one of their conditions for joining the new government was a pledge that any tax increases would not target “the middle classes or working French people”.

Immigration

But the strand of government that is most likely to affect foreigners in France, or those hoping to move here some day, is the pledge to “control immigration and promote integration”.

Again there is no detail on this, but the French government’s most recent bill to “promote integration” introduced language tests for certain types of residency card, while raising the language standard required for other processes.

We know that Barnier himself is strongly to the right on the topic of immigration – in his unsuccessful 2022 bid for the Les Républicains presidential nomination he called for a total moratorium on all immigration into France from non-EU countries.

Barnier said he would organise a referendum if elected, asking voters to approve constitutional changes and the ability of parliament to set immigrant quotas each year.

The exact composition of the new government has not been revealed – it is expected “before Sunday” – but we do know that Barnier has appointed several ministers from within the Les Républicains party.

These are reported to include Bruno Retailleau, who sparked outcry with his comments about immigrants in the context of the 2022 riots.

Speaking about the rioters who were arrested, 90 percent of whom were French citizens, he said: “OK, they’re French, but these are French people in their official identity, and unfortunately for the second and third generations (of immigrants), there is a sort of regression towards their ethnic roots.”

Clearly for some politicians, you can never be integrated enough.

New laws?

Although it’s far too early to think of any specific policies – and the government may not last long enough to actually see any laws passed – the debate around France’s recent immigration bill does provide some clues about the goals of right-wing politicians.

The Immigration law that finally passed in January changed – among other things – conditions for certain types of residency card and introduced expanded language tests, a civics test and a declaration of allegiance to ‘French values’ for foreigners living here.

READ ALSO What changes under France’s new immigration bill

However as the bill progressed through parliament, many right-wing lawmakers attempted to add amendments to toughen it up. In the end, most of the amendments were either voted down in parliament or struck out later by the Constitutional Council, but they do provide a guide to right-wing goals.

Among the rejected amendments were;

Migration quotas – the original bill contained nothing about migration quotas, but a section on this was added in the Senate (which is controlled by Les Républicains). The amendment was vague, setting out only the principle that parliament can set migration quotas – the wording of the text talked about ‘economic migration’, suggesting that these quotas would apply only to people coming to France to work, not students or retirees. The quotas would not affect asylum seekers or people arriving on a family reunification visa.

It called for parliament to have an annual debate on migration, with the ‘objective’ of setting quotas or numbers.

This was one of many amendments that was eventually struck out by the Constitutional Council – although on procedural grounds, not because of its content.

Healthcare restrictions – currently undocumented foreigners who are in France for more than three months are entitled to basic healthcare under the Aide medicale de l’Etat, with costs reimbursed by the State for hospital treatment and medication. The amendment proposed a complete ban on this for anyone who is undocumented or in an irregular immigration situation.

Benefit restrictions – currently foreigners in France can qualify for benefits such as housing allowance or certain family benefits after they have been resident for six months, the amendment aimed to increase the qualification period to five years.

Expelling radicalised foreigners – the law that was eventually passed makes it easier to expel radicalised foreigners by removing certain protections, including the restriction that people who came to France aged 13 or under cannot be expelled once they reach adulthood. The amendment aimed toughen this up still further by allowing the expulsion not just of people who are on terror watchlists, but of people who have “committed a grave and deliberate violation of the principles of the French Republic”.

Toughen asylum rules – various amendments aimed to make it easier to expel failed asylum seekers by reducing the amount of time for appeals and allowing a notice to quit the country to be served as soon as a first application is rejected.

Limit family reunification rights – rules around foreigners in France being joined by spouses or family members would also be tightened up under the amendment, with a minimum stay of 24 months before you can be joined by a spouse or family member, and extra financial requirements.

French citizenship for children born in France – currently children who are born in France to foreign parents are automatically given the right to French citizenship once they reach 18 under the droit du sol principle (although in order to do anything practical like get a passport or ID card they still need to apply for a naturalisation certificate). Several amendments proposed that this no longer be an automatic right and children must “express their will” to get citizenship – presumably through an extra admin procedures.

All the immigration measures listed above would apply to non-EU nationals – anyone who needs a visa or carte de séjour to spend more than three months in France.

SHOW COMMENTS