While the Games occupied people’s minds for two and a half weeks, the political battle resumed as soon as the Olympic flag was handed over to Los Angeles. While five weeks after the legislative elections, France still does not have a new government, Initiatives are multiplying, while waiting for Emmanuel Macron’s decision. On Monday, August 12, senior civil servant Lucie Castets explained to parliamentarians her priorities if she were appointed Prime Minister, as requested by the New Popular Front (NFP). At the same time, Gabriel Attal and Stéphane Séjourné also took up their pens to write to elected officials.
In this letter, the president of the Ensemble pour la République group in the Assembly and the leader of the Renaissance party highlight a “action pact for the French”allowing to “building legislative compromises”, with six priorities: the restoration of public accounts, the defense of secularism and institutions, purchasing power and housing, the environment, security and public services.The two figures in the presidential camp are addressing all parties, with the exception of the National Rally (RN) and La France Insoumise (LFI), although Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s movement shares the NFP program with its left-wing partners. Franceinfo has delved back into the proposals of the left, the center and the right to compare them and see if consensus could emerge around these priorities.
On the “defense of secularism”, an elusive compromise
The issue of secularism is a highly inflammatory subject for the political class. Even within the NFP, the parties have divergent views on the subject. In their program for the legislative elections, the Macronist party and its allies declared that they wanted to reaffirm secularism “at the school of the Republic against the battering rams of Islamists and extremists”. Recalling the ban on wearing the abaya decided in September 2023 (denounced by part of the left), they promised to fight “for secularism in all our public services”An ambition shared by the deputies of the Republican Right (name of the non-Ciottist LR group in the Assembly) in their proposal for an “emergency legislative pact” published in July.
In their legislative program, the Republicans went even further, calling for amending the Constitution to introduce a rule according to which “No one can use their religion or origin as a reason not to respect the laws of the Republic”The NFP, at the opposite end of the spectrum from the right’s proposals, proposed in its programme:“initiate a vast plan to train civil servants in secularism and the legal principles of the 1905 law”.
On “the renewal of institutions”, a potential agreement on proportional representation
On the question of institutions, the visions could converge on the voting method. The NFP, following a proposal long defended by LFI, wants to move to the VIth Republic by convening “an elected citizen constituent assembly”In her letter detailing her priorities and sent to the deputies on Monday, Lucie Castets defends a “regaining the space given to parliamentary work”.
The Macronist camp did not propose any institutional reform in its program, but several of its deputies called for the introduction of proportional representation for the legislative elections, promised by Emmanuel Macron in 2017. A promise also made by the NFP. It remains to agree on the modalities. Concerning the law on the non-accumulation of mandates that the right would like to repeal, the positions seem irreconcilable, the left being opposed to it.
On the “control of public accounts”, LR and the presidential camp on the same wavelength
In terms of public accounts, two major blocs are in conflict, with the presidential camp and LR on one side, and the NFP on the other. Generally speaking, the former want to make savings and are opposed to tax increases to restore public accounts, while that an excessive deficit procedure was opened by the EU in July. “We will respect a golden rule against tax increases for the French in order to protect them from tax bludgeoning”defended Ensemble in its program. There are nuances, but the LR do not disagree with this vision: the right-wing executives affirmed, during the presentation of their “legislative pact” that they wanted “immediately contribute to a 25 billion savings plan”.
On the other side, the NFP presents another trajectory, which is difficult to reconcile as it stands with the Ensemble-LR bloc. In return for increasing the minimum wage to 1,600 euros, repealing the pension reform or increasing the civil servants’ index point by 10%, the NFP wants the return of the wealth solidarity tax (ISF), with a climate component of 15 billion euros. However, Lucie Castets specified in her letter that these measures remained “horizons”suggesting that adjustments are possible.
On the “quality of life of the French”, “purchasing power” and housing, possible consensuses
On this topic, there are convergences on shared objectives rather than on concrete measures. On purchasing power, for example, the principle of a major conference on salaries can bring them together. Before the legislative elections, all three parties promised to increase salaries: the NFP wants to increase the minimum wage to 1,600 euros and Ensemble wants “free up salary increases between the minimum wage and 2,000 euros” via a reform of social security contributions. For its part, the Republican Right says it wants “increase net salary by reducing charges”.
In terms of housing, it is support for first-time buyers that can achieve consensus, at least in its aim. In its terms, it is already a little more complicated: the NFP defends “the opening of zero-rate loans to all first-time buyer households without geographical distinction or between new or old”the presidential bloc wishes to allow “1 million young people from middle and working classes to access property ownership by exempting them from transfer taxes (‘notary fees’) for the purchase of a home up to 250,000 euros”while the Republicans promised in March to“establish a tax credit on loan interest for the purchase of a primary residence”.
On the “environment”, the nuclear issue unites… but divides the left
Environmental issues could be the subject of a broad consensus between the left and the former presidential majority. Some, like Oxfam boss Cécile Duflot, on Wednesday, in The World, thus requesting the establishment of a “climate coalition“. The NFP wants “pass an energy-climate law” to aim for carbon neutrality in 2050 as provided for by European law, in particular by developing renewable energies and accelerating thermal renovations. An ambition shared by the former presidential majority which,‘by 2030, wants to reduce “55% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to 1990”. “For that, we will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by a further 20% by 2027, maintaining the unprecedented rate achieved last year (-6%)”stated Ensemble in its program for the legislative elections
A major subject nevertheless risks proving divisive: that of the revival of nuclear power. While Renaissance wishes “to start construction of 14 new reactors” and that the right-wing elected officials want “investing in French nuclear excellence”the NFP parties disagree on the subject, LFI and the ecologists being hostile to any new power station, unlike the Socialist Party and the communists.
On “security”, the Macronist bloc and the right can agree
As with the control of public accounts, synergies in terms of security seem possible between the presidential camp and the rightless between the left and these two other blocs. Together wants “review the minority excuse” for young offenders “in order to break the recidivism and the feeling of impunity”by promoting “the principle of immediate sanction with immediate appearance in the most serious cases”. “The minority excuse can no longer be applied systematically”estimated in April Xavier Bertrand, LR president of the Hauts-de-France region. The right has already restricted twice the excuse of minority, in 2007under Nicolas Sarkozy.
The Republicans, for their part, are defending the return of minimum sentences, introduced by the right in 2007 and abolished by the left in 2014. Part of the presidential camp could be in favour of it: Horizons had defended the return of this measure in 2023, while clashing with the position of Renaissance.
On the other hand, the left is opposed to the reintroduction of minimum sentences, as well as the removal of the minority excuse. It is particularly highlighting the redeployment of community police teams as a key axis of its program in this area. One point could allow a rapprochement with the presidential camp: the recruitment of additional staff in this area. The former majority has already agreed to recruit 1,500 magistrates and 1,800 clerks by 2027, while the left wants to increase, among other things, the staff of the judicial, technical and scientific police.
On “public services”, few convergences are possible
At first glance, all three camps have the same goal: strengthening public services. However, not all agree on how to go about it. In his “legislative pact”, the right proposes to concentrate on schools and hospitals, and insists on the need for “debureaucratize”. For its part, the NFP promises in its program to “fixing public services”in particular by organizing “a conference to save the public hospital”by strengthening the resources of schools and recruiting more civil servants. Lucie Castets, co-founder of the association Nos services publics, made a commitment in her letter to “defend local public services”.
In its program, Ensemble promised to open “a France services house in each canton, 20 minutes from home”but also of “pursue” salary increases for civil servants. A desire which seems difficult to reconcile with the “25 billion savings plan” wanted by the right.