Major bills, reforms grind to a halt amid French government collapse • FRANCE 24 English

Major bills, reforms grind to a halt amid French government collapse • FRANCE 24 English

From the energy industry to public broadcasting to legislation on euthanasia and criminal justice, the collapse of the government means delay or worse for a slew of bills that were under consideration by French lawmakers. Already passed by the Senate in July. A bill laying out the country’s energy policy through 2030 is now in limbo. The bill allocated how much of France’s energy would come from nuclear and renewable sources and was seen as part of the country’s goal to reach carbon neutrality by 2050. Also on hold, a controversial proposed reform of public broadcasting being pushed by culture minister Rashid Dadati. The bill was due to return to the assembly this fall and many expected it would pass creating a holding company to oversee and possibly make cuts to radio France France television and the national audiovisisual institute. The bill could now be postponed indefinitely. Already delayed once by the government’s collapse in June of last year. This May the National Assembly adopted a bill allowing terminally ill patients to end their lives and a second bill that expands paliotative care. But with the government’s collapse, it’s unclear when a final vote on either of the bills could happen. Criminal justice reform championed by the justice minister is also now on the back burner. The proposed reforms included changes to sentencing guidelines intended to give judges more leeway in handing out punishments. Economic reforms in France have also been tabled, including a bill to fight social security and tax fraud, which the former prime minister had hoped would save more than two billion euros in next year’s budget. The government’s collapse is also reverberating on the other side of the globe in the French overseas semi-autonomous territory of New Calonia, which was granted a new status just two months ago, enabling citizens to have dual nationality with France. There’s been political upheaval over when to hold local elections, and the government collapse on the mainland could complicate discussions there and ultimately delay those contests.

The collapse of the French government means that many legislative projects that were underway are now grinding to a halt. In addition to the big question of how to balance the budget, the items now on hold include everything from the proposed reform of public broadcasting to a final vote on a bill that would give terminally ill patients the right to end their lives. FRANCE 24’s Monte Francis reports.
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