France’s Socialist government has decided to use a decree to force approval of its flagship reform programme in parliament, where a group of rebels in its own camp is threatening to block it, legislative sources said, reports Politico.
The action expected on Tuesday marks the second time that prime minister Manuel Valls has resorted to using the controversial “49-3” decree — the number refers to an article in the French constitution — to avoid a potentially embarrassing failure of the bill in parliament, where his Socialist Party nominally controls an absolute majority.
Some 40 “rebel” deputies in the Socialist camp had threatened to oppose economy minister Emmanuel Macron’s bill, which aims to bolster job creation and reassure the European Commission, as well as Berlin, that France is serious about overhauling its economy.
The much-revised text includes limited liberalization measures for city-to-city bus travel and some protected jobs, as well as plans to set limits on the amount of money employers have to pay workers in cases of wrongful dismissal.
Socialist sources told POLITICO last week that recourse to the decree was almost inevitable given the degree of opposition.
“It’s a major admission of weakness,” Eric Woerth, a campaign adviser to former president Nicolas Sarkozy, told France Bleue radio.