As soon as 49.3 was drawn by Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne on Thursday, the left-wing Nupes coalition warned that it would use "all means at its disposal" to defeat the disputed pension reform, from support for the social movement to a referendum of shared initiative.
Jean-Luc Mélenchon announced on Friday that the LFI group, and probably the entire left-wing Nupes coalition, would support the motion that the Liot group of independents would table in the National Assembly. He acknowledged that this "gave the greatest possible chance to censorship" over a Nupes motion, which would be reluctant to vote for on the right-wing MPs opposed to the reform. However, the bar of an absolute majority to bring down the government seems difficult to achieve. One certainty: no member of the Nupes will sign a motion of censure of the RN, assured several members.
The left wants to swell the ranks of the protest by taking advantage of the "authoritarian" signal, in its eyes, launched by the government with article 49.3. And not just in the wake of the intersyndicale, since Jean-Luc Mélenchon said to "encourage" "spontaneous mobilizations throughout the country", such as those which took place on Thursday, because "that's where it's happening" . He also called to demonstrate at the call of the inter-union during the weekend and next Thursday.
The leader of the Greens, Marine Tondelier, repeats over and over again that "49.3 does not exist in the street". Left-wing leaders will also continue to hold all-out meetings together. Several are already scheduled, including Sunday in Paris with the Insoumise Danièle Obono, the socialist David Assouline and the anti-capitalist Olivier Besancenot.
Nupes members have been talking about this option for several days. This complex procedure "allows the implementation of this reform to be blocked for nine months", underlined the Socialist MP Valérie Rabault, who "believes in it".
The shared initiative referendum (RIP) provides for the possibility of organizing a popular consultation on a bill "on the initiative of one fifth of the members of Parliament", i.e. at least 185 of the 925 parliamentarians (577 deputies, 348 senators). It must also be "supported by one tenth of the voters", or 4.87 million people, whose signatures must be collected within nine months. But, "if a RIP is triggered on pensions, it must be before the promulgation of the pension law", specified Valérie Rabault.
PCF deputy Stéphane Peu assured on Tuesday that he had the necessary 185 parliamentarians. His bill will propose that "the retirement age cannot exceed 62," he said. The Insoumis will join, but are less convinced that a RIP is the solution, because they aim for a "short-term withdrawal from the reform", explains their coordinator, Manuel Bompard.
The leader of the LFI deputies, Mathilde Panot, promised that the left would seize the Constitutional Council. The coalition will argue that the reform, inserted in a draft amendment to the Social Security budget, is a legislative horseman, since finances are not the only aspect addressed in the text.
If he is more discreet on this theme, Jean-Luc Mélenchon still recently thought of an inevitable dissolution. When President Emmanuel Macron posed the threat at the start of the pension battle, Manuel Bompard, close to the tribune, replied "poor".
Three times presidential candidate but ensuring that he would not be a fourth time, Jean-Luc Mélenchon is very keen to return to the polls. He had good luck Friday to refer to the president: "It was he who added the dissolution [in the debate, editor's note], but it is not in the Constitution" for the case of a motion of censure adopted.
In the event of dissolution, the Insoumis intends to carry out the "Mélenchon Prime Minister" campaign again. It remains to be seen what his partners think of it as internal tensions at Nupes have increased in recent months.
