The French are overwhelmingly in favor of the government passing a law that would facilitate deportations, with 82 percent saying they want such a law, even as the Macron government has overseen a dramatic drop in deportations over the years.
The poll, conducted by Consumer Science and Analytics (CSA) for CNews, was published on Wednesday, April 26. According to the precise wording of the questionnaire provided to 1,011 people, deportation concerns foreigners who are “delinquent” or “illegally” in France.
In detail, men (83 percent) are slightly more in favor of such a law than women (81 percent). The answers vary slightly according to the age of the respondents. Indeed, those aged 65 and over are most enthusiastic about the law (86 percent), while respondents aged between 35 and 49 are the most opposed (22 percent). However, even in this group, a clear majority backs the new law.
[pp id=72600]
French President Emmanuel Macron has long promised to bring the deportation rate to 100 percent, but the data shows that very few migrants, even those convicted of crimes, are actually deported. In fact, fewer than 15 percent of migrants slated for removal from French territory are actually sent home.
Following the murder of 12-year-old Paris girl Lola last year by an Algerian migrant with deportation orders, the French government temporarily imposed visa restrictions on a number of North African countries to help pressure the governments into accepting back their nationals, but Macron quickly backtracked within months. Immigration in the country hit record highs last year, and the share of the ethnic French population continues to decline.
Currently, the French government says that a new immigration law will be postponed until March. While the law is designed to increase deportations, many elements of it will also speed up legal immigration.
The poll also took into account the socio-professional categories of respondents, with people of all incomes and professional backgrounds in favor of a law to speed up deportations. Individuals belonging to the upper professional category (CSP+) are 80 percent in favor of an immigration law facilitating deportations; this figure is 81 percent among blue-collar professions and 84 percent among the unemployed.
[pp id=70882]
Political affiliation does, however, play an important role. The poll shows 53 percent of the respondents who affiliate with the left were in favor of a bill facilitating deportations, while 47 percent said they were opposed.
The majority of eco-socialist LFI supporters were opposed to this proposal (61 percent), slightly more than the supporters of Europe Ecologie-Les Verts (59 percent). Voters who identify with the Socialist Party responded favorably to the idea of a stricter deportation law.
On the right, however, 96 percent want a tougher deportation law. There is not even a debate on the side of the Republicans who voted 100 percent in favor of an immigration law facilitating the deportation of foreigners. On the side of the National Rally (RN) voters (97 percent) also answered “yes,” almost unanimously, with 96 percent of Reconquest party voters also backing such a law.
