“Bordélization” of the National Assembly, a strategy of rot… The Executive has constantly denounced the attitude of the Nupes since the beginning of the review of the pension reform in the chamber.
Most accuse him of wanting to slow down the debates in order to prevent consideration of the bill as a whole, in particular article 7 on the extension of the retirement age, between now and the end of the debates, scheduled for Friday night to the midnight. Indeed, more than 20,000 amendments to the text have been presented and, this Friday at mid-morning, more than 8,000 remain to be examined in the Chamber.
Unpublished? Not at all: clogging is an ancient practice at the Palais-Bourbon. The proof in 4 examples.
• In 1981, Jacques Toubon and “the coconut trees” against retirement at age 60
A year after the election of François Mitterrand to the Elysée, the left decided to legislate to raise the legal retirement age to 60, one of the main campaign promises of the socialist candidate. The right, which is fiercely opposed to it, presented numerous amendments to slow down the discussions, turning this debate into one of the longest in the Fifth Republic.
With a symbol: the “coconut tree” amendment by Jacques Toubon, a pillar of the RPR (the ancestor of the Republicans, editor’s note). The Parisian-elect, then very close to Jacques Chirac, presented an amendment asking the government “to plant in each municipality coconut trees in a number proportional to the population aged 60 or over and to make compulsory, at least once a year, the ‘climbing of these trees throughout the main population’.
Which illustrates for him “the battle of the time to live”, one of François Mitterrand’s campaign mantras.
• In 1998, Christine Boutin and her speech of more than 5 hours against Pacs
In 1998, Prime Minister Lionel Jospin championed the Civil Solidarity Pact (Pacs) which allows same-sex or heterosexual couples to form a civil union under the law. Faced with a divided left, the right joins forces to counter the reform.
However, in a minority, they first managed to obtain a motion of inadmissibility to vote against the text, much helped by the strong absenteeism of the leftist deputies. Which forces the government to fully review its copy and submit its bill a month later.
It is then Christine Boutin who takes the floor on the right and sets the mood by presenting her arguments against the ancestor of marriage for all at 5:30 am. She holds the microphone until 4 in the morning, to the cheers of some of her classmates. The Jospin government then limited speeches to 30 minutes before reviewing the articles.
• In 2006, about 140,000 amendments to slow down the debates on GDF
About 140,000 amendments were submitted in 2006 during the bill for the privatization of GDF and Suez – an absolute record under the Fifth Republic. Exasperated, the president of the National Assembly, Jean-Louis Debré, had the microphone photographed of him at the Perchoir, surrounded by piles of amendments. They were actually blank sheets of paper, meant to give the illusion.
To arrive at these astronomical figures, the left has used all possible means: ten identical amendments can thus be defended successively by ten different deputies
The episode left very bad memories for Nicolas Sarkozy who, once at the Élysée, pushed through a constitutional amendment that allowed better organization of the debates.
• In 2009, Casimir and Saturnin during the debates on public broadcasting
In 2009, the deputies examined a bill on public broadcasting, which in particular wants to end advertising after 8 pm on the antennas of France Televisions. Two socialist deputies then distinguished themselves by their speeches. Patrick Bloche thus evokes before the microphone of the National Assembly “the legendary figures of television Nicolás, Pimprenelle and Zébulon, as well as Casimiro”, before evoking the duckling “Saturnino”, protagonists of television programs for children.
His colleague Marcel Rogemont talks about the “cooking time of the lobster”. Once the floor has been obtained, nothing obliges the deputy to mention the subject of the debate. The UMP does not like the maneuver and has made a video clip to denounce the parliamentary obstruction of the PS. In response, the Socialists also post a video: “Our right to amend is your freedom of speech.”
Source: BFM TV
