The French prime minister took the podium on Wednesday afternoon to outline all of the steps her government will be taking in the coming days and weeks.
The areas of focus are; a ‘green reindustrialisation’ of France, full employment, justice and sovereignty (including immigration) and public services such as education and healthcare.
Here is the calendar that the prime minister laid out;
May
Border control – the prime minister said that 150 additional police officers will be deployed to France’s border with Italy next week to help deal with “increased migratory pressure at the Italian border”.
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Green industry bill – to be presented to parliament on May 15th, this bill will reportedly include several pillars including a segment on the prevention of forest fires, which will include measures related to brush clearing and a tool to better track the risk of fire in certain areas.
It will also tackle other subjects such as government aids for home renovations, as well as a plan to expand commuter rail services (like the RER in the Paris region) to other cities and urban areas across the country.
Anti-fraud, internet safety and regulation – during the month of May, the prime minister announced that legislation to establish an ‘anti-scam filter’ to allow internet users to report fraudulent sites will be put forward. This legislation will also contain measures to strengthen internet safety for minors, including tools to block access to pornographic websites for minors and to counter cyber-bullying.
June
Profit-sharing for workers – Borne said that ‘before the summer’ the government will seek to build a “new pact for life at work’ alongside unions for better work conditions. The proposal will require companies with more than 11 employees to open up profit-sharing schemes for their workers – similar obligations already exist for companies that are larger than 50 people. Borne said this will be presented “within three months”.
A roadmap for ‘green’ heavy industry and climate – By the end of June, the PM promised a roadmap for the “decarbonisation” of heavy industry in France. This will be part France’s ecological transition, which will involve a multi-year strategy. The full ‘energy and climate bill’ will be debated in the autumn.
Judges and clerks recruitment plan – the French government hopes to recruit at least 10,000 additional employees to better staff the justice system. This will be particularly focused on recruiting more judges and clerks. The legislation surrounding this plan will be “debated in parliament in June”, according to Borne.
The successor to Pôle Emploi – In early June, France’s administrative body that handles unemployment and aids people in job searching will be replaced by France Travail. The details of how Pôle Emploi’s replacement will differ from the original have yet to be announced.
Anti-inflation packages – Borne promised that the French government will provide the public with an update on anti-inflation mechanisms, at some point during the month of June. It has already been announced that the freeze on domestic gas prices will end by the end of the year, while the freeze on electricity prices will continue until 2025.
Action plan for aviation emissions – The Prime Minister also targeted the airline industry for climate action. She said that an action plan to decrease carbon emissions in the aviation sector will be announced in June. Transport minister Clément Beaune has already announced tougher regulation on private jets.
By July 14th
On France’s national day – July 14th, or Bastille Day – French President Emmanuel Macron will give an assessment of progress made on the priorities announced for the “100 days”.
By the end of the summer
Some priorities were not given precise timelines, but rather will occur at some point before the end of the summer. Borne said that in addition to the 150 officers to be sent to the French-Italian border in May, the government will also put in place an ‘experimental border force’ made up of members of the interior ministry, law enforcement officers, and customs officials. This will be effective within six months.
At the start of autumn and the new school year
Short-term teacher contracts – Due to teacher shortages, France has in the past relied on enseignants contractuels, or substitutes who are not fully qualified teachers, to help make up for the shortages and ensure that there is a teacher in front of every class.
However, some have complained that these teachers on short-term contracts are not adequately trained. In response, the French government will, at the start of the 2023-2024 school year, require that these teachers come from within the school’s staff itself. Meaning – when a teacher is absent, they will be replaced by one on a short-term contract who is already part of that school.
New jobs for nurses and medical assistants – 2,000 new posts will open up for nurses and medical assistants across the country in the autumn, with goals of alleviating the burden of administrative work from primary care doctors.
Immigration bill – PM Borne said that the parliament will not tackle immigration until autumn, at which point a bill will be presented. She said that in the coming months, the President and ministers will meet with opposition party members, namely the centre-right Les Républicains, to seek a better consensus.
“The fight against illegal immigration is a priority of the government, but there is no majority to vote in such a text at the moment”, Borne said. “We aim to present a text at the beginning of October”.
Clean energy vehicles – The PM noted that the government hopes to make more “clean energy vehicles” available at “affordable prices” this autumn.
A ‘full energy and climate bill’ – the legislative form of the energy and climate roadmap, to be presented in June, will be put before parliament in the autumn.
