“The reindustrialization of France will not be achieved without immigration,” said Tuesday the Minister Delegate in charge of Industry, Roland Lescure, reacting to the article published in Libération by 35 deputies and senators who demand the regularization of undocumented workers. in “sectors in tension”.
“I support this forum first and foremost as a citizen,” declared the minister on France Info, before adding that according to him the reindustrialization of the country will happen “in part” through “selective” immigration.
On Tuesday, around ten deputies from the majority co-signed with left-wing elected officials a forum to defend the “humanist” project of regularization of undocumented workers in “sectors in tension”, a controversial measure of the immigration bill, opposed by the right and the extreme right.
“Within 10 years, we will need around 1.3 million people in the industry,” underlined Mr. Lescure. If a good part of this workforce will come from France, “we will undoubtedly have to look for it elsewhere too”, underlined the minister.
“We are not going to open the doors wide, we will select”, clarified Mr. Lescure, but “we must integrate the people who help us develop and project us towards the future”.
“Today we have restaurants and factories which would not operate without foreign immigration,” highlighted the minister.
“French industry does not have a jersey color. (…) The integration challenges are enormous but we still have needs and we can meet them in part through selective immigration,” he concluded.
In the absence of a majority in the National Assembly, the government is trying to find a compromise with LR on the immigration bill, but several right-wing leaders have reaffirmed in recent days their opposition to the regularization aspect of the bill.
The government could be forced to use the constitutional weapon of 49.3 to pass the text without a vote.
According to Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin, the text should arrive on November 6 in the Senate in public session, then in early 2024 in the Assembly.