With the flat of his hand, Emmanuel Macron tapped the table set in front of him, revealing his annoyance. During the press conference he gave on Tuesday January 16, the President of the Republic was questioned by The world on a measure of the “immigration” law which tightens access to several social benefits for foreigners who are not nationals of the European Union, in a legal situation. The question was whether this provision, obeying the logic of “national preference” dear to the extreme right, did not pose a problem of coherence in relation to the action and the values of justice carried by the head of the executive. “What you are saying is false, in terms”, declared the tenant of the Elysée, clearly stung. But his response, in reality, in no way contradicted the fact that people who do not have French nationality will have to wait longer to receive certain financial aid.
The measure in question establishes two regimes. One provides that the foreigner must either have resided in France for at least five years, or “prove a duration of affiliation of at least thirty months for a professional activity” – knowing that this may also include periods not worked (unemployment, sick leave). This ” waiting period “ is new for the targeted aid (family allowances, childcare benefit, personalized autonomy allowance, etc.). The other regime put in place concerns personal housing assistance: to receive it, the foreigner must either hold a student visa, or have been established in the territory for at least five years, or even provide proof of “affiliation period of at least three months for a professional activity”. This is, again, an innovation.
“It’s not always aberrant”
During the press conference, Mr. Macron was careful not to mention the content of these rules. He sought to defend himself, first by recalling that benefits – such as the RSA and the activity bonus – are only paid to foreigners after five years of residence. “Is this unfair? My answer is no, it’s not always aberrant”he clarified.
However, his remarks do not mean that he adheres to the new waiting periods. On the contrary: these were desired neither by the government nor by the majority, as the Head of State underlined Tuesday evening, but they were still adopted, because “we needed an agreement on this text”with Les Républicains and the National Rally, ” To advance “.
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