French opposition MPs criticised after Covid vaccine pass debate suspended

The French government has heavily criticised opposition MPs after parliamentary debate over the proposed introduction of a “vaccine pass” was unexpectedly suspended on Monday night after members of the Assemblée nationale voted with a show of hands to go home.

The move came after seven hours of often-heated exchanges as ministers clashed with critics over the controversial measure due to be introduced on 15 January, but now postponed.

Government spokesperson Gabriel Attal on Tuesday accused opposition MPs of playing politics and halting the adoption of what he said were “essential measures…in an urgent situation”. He said the government would push on with the controversial legislation.

The proposal is to turn the current “health pass” requiring either vaccination, recovery from Covid or a negative Covid test into a “vaccine pass” requiring people to be fully vaccinated if they wish to access restaurants, bars, museums, cinemas, theatres, long distance trains, hotels and many other public places. Hospitals and health establishments would not require a “vaccine pass”.

The debate, which began on Monday afternoon, was due to continue into the early hours of Tuesday and there were more than 500 amendments still to be debated when the parliamentary session was suspended shortly before midnight.

Earlier, the prime minister, Jean Castex, had told the house the government could not accept that 5.3 million people remained unvaccinated in France. The new pass was intended to introduce “heavier constraints on the non-vaccinated”, he admitted.

France is currently reporting an average of around 160,000 new Covid cases a day.

“The tidal wave has indeed arrived. It’s enormous, but we will not give in to panic,” the health minister, Olivier Véran, told MPs.

Facing vehement attacks from the far right Rassemblement National (RN) and far left La France Insoumise (France Unbowed – LFI) over the infringement of civil liberties, Véran added “selfishness often hides behind talk of supposed liberties”.

Most MPs from Emmanuel Macron’s centrist La République en Marche (La REM) party and the mainstream opposition Les Républicains (LR) support the measure.

“Last night we saw a form of irresponsible friendship being formed with the MPs of La France Insoumise, the Rassemblement National and LR to derail the timetable for the adoption of the vaccine pass,” Attal told France Inter radio.

“The vaccine pass has to come into effect as quickly as possible,” Attal added.

Far left presidential candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon of LFI, who had called for the new legislation to be rejected accused the government of having “sown indescribable chaos because of your short-sightedness” and accused Véran of “arrogance”.

He called for “a global plan” and poured scorn on “measures on those who have the right to eat popcorn or drink their coffee standing or sitting”.

Critics also accused the government, which is one-seat short of an absolute parliamentary majority, of amateurism after it found itself without enough MPs present in the lower house to defeat the vote to suspend.

Alexis Corbière of LFI said members of the governing party were to blame for the stalemate. “LREM MPs weren’t sufficiently mobilised last night and found themselves in a minority. It’s absolutely their fault,” he tweeted.

The new legislation would also introduce heavier penalties for those using fake vaccine passes or venues that fail to check people’s vaccine status of up to five years in prison and €75,000 (£63,000) fines.