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French government to bypass parliament to introduce controversial labour law

11 May 2016

"France's government announced Tuesday that it would empower Prime Minister Manuel Valls to bypass parliament and push through controversial labour reforms by decree despite widespread public demonstrations against the bill.

The decision follows weeks of sometimes violent protests against the proposed reform, which among other changes seeks to make hiring and firing easier for companies.

“Because the country must move forward ... the cabinet has authorised me to act on behalf of the government,” Valls told lawmakers, to loud boos and heckling from some deputies and applause from others."

See: French PM to use special powers to bypass parliament on labour reform (France 24, link)

The decision to implement the law by decree has sparked a vote of confidence in the government:

"The French government will face a confidence vote on Thursday after it decided to bypass debate and vote in parliament on a law to reform the labour market. The bill, which makes lay offs and longer working hours easier has triggered demonstrations and is opposed by MPs within the majority."

See: French government to face confidence vote on labour law (EUobserver, link)

Spanish newspaper Diagonal made the following point:

"In 2015, the French government used Article 49.3 of the Constitution three times in relation to the 'Macron Law' on "growth and activity", a measure also highly-contested in the streets. President Hollande seems to have forgotten the words he used ten years ago against the use of this article by the government of Dominique de Villepin under the presidency of Jacques Chirac: "49.3 is a brutality, 49.3 is a negation of democracy, 49.3 is a way of halting or impeding parliamentary debate." In fact, various French media outlets have sought to highlight today that the government of the Socialist Party has used this constitutional article on more occasions than governments of the right." (emphasis in original)

See: El Gobierno francés aprueba la reforma laboral por decreto (Diagonal, link)