Several opposition MPs deplore the number of amendments tabled by Nupes, while there are only a few hours of debate left in the Social Affairs Commission.
Does the strategy of Nupes turn against… Nupes? Since the start of the debates in the Commission at the National Assembly on the pension reform, the deputies on the left have deplored the very restricted timetable for examining the text. By Wednesday evening, 20 articles and more than 7,000 amendments, mostly from Nupes, must be debated and voted on.
Hence the intervention on Monday of the socialist Arthur Delaporte, who requests the opening of two days of additional debate: Thursday and Friday. A request that has not yet been approved by Fadila Khattabi, Renaissance deputy and president of the Social Affairs Commission.
“We have to make 250 amendments an hour”
Especially since the deputies will not sit all day on Tuesday and Wednesday. According to the agenda of the National Assembly, the commission will be open for just over 4 p.m. over the next two days.
And even if a few extra hours are granted, the pace will be frantic. “If I divide 5,000 by 20 hours, we have to make 250 amendments per hour,” lamented MP Charles de Courson (LIOT) on Monday evening. “Everything is done so that we do not attack Article 7,” he said.
“Withdraw your amendments, let’s move on!”
Article 7 of the bill deals with the legal retirement age. It therefore includes the flagship measure of the government text.
He was joined by RN Laure Lavalette, who asked Nupes to “remove [ses] amendments” on the senior index. This device, which “is useless” according to the far-right elected representative, occupied the parliamentarians all evening.
“Withdraw your amendments, let’s move on! The French deserve that we have a slightly more informed debate and that we get to article 7. In any case, you will have done everything to prevent us from getting there” , lamented Laure Lavalette.
Still 4700 amendments to study
This Monday midnight, when the meeting closed, there remained, according to the website of the National Assemblymore than 4700 amendments to consider.
The tight deadlines are imposed by the vector chosen by the executive, a draft amending budget of Social Security, which limits to fifty days in total the debates in Parliament.
Whatever happens in committee, the text will be debated in the hemicycle of the National Assembly from Monday February 6 until Friday 17, midnight. Will section 7 be considered? Everything will depend on the number of amendments tabled.
