The president of France, Emmanuel Macronwill soon submit to the leaders of the French political parties a proposal to simplify the conditions for recourse to a referendum, with eyes on the highly sensitive issue of immigration for France.

In a letter addressed to political leaders, Emmanuel Macron summarizes the content of the oral talks he had with them during the August 30 meeting on the topic of overcoming the divisions and impasses resulting from the absence of an absolute governing majority in the French National Assembly.

One of the issues discussed was the appeal to a referendum. Emmanuel Macron announces the submission of a proposal “in the coming weeks” to widen the scope of this tool, which could be used on the issue of immigration following constitutional reform.

In his six-page letter, the French president acknowledges that the issue of immigration is the subject of well-known disputes, but it cannot be sidestepped. The immigration bill “will be debated in Parliament in the autumn” and then immigration could potentially be the subject of a referendum if there is agreement on a constitutional reform to amend the relevant arrangements.

The integration of foreigners should also be treated in two axes, housing and the policy of distributing new arrivals throughout French territory, the French president says in his letter.

The immigration bill, which the French government has been trying to pass for months, is developing into a headache for the government, which is squeezed between the right and the far right, who reject the legalization of immigrants without a residence permit who work in critical sectors that they are affected by a lack of working hands, and the left, which considers it inevitable.

In an interview with Le Point magazine, Emmanuel Macron reiterates that he seeks a “significant reduction in immigration”. As in all European countries, the issue is extremely sensitive for France, where immigrants make up 10% of the population (35% of whom have French citizenship), according to official figures, and where more than twenty laws on immigration laws have been passed in the last 40 years.

In his letter to political leaders, Emmanuel Macron also confirms the October “social conference” with social partners dedicated to wages below the minimum wage and assures that the road map for eco-planning will be presented to political forces within September.