France’s Health Minister Resigns over Strict New Immigration Laws

France’s Health Minister Aurélien Rousseau has submitted his resignation following the adoption of the controversial immigration law in parliament, French media reported late on Tuesday.

The newspapers Le Figaro and Le Parisien reported Rousseau’s resignation, but both said that it was unclear whether Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne had accepted it, said German news agency (dpa), Bernama reported.

Rousseau is part of the left wing of the government and was an opponent of the stricter legal text that parliament passed on Tuesday evening.

The debate on the immigration law has led to rifts within the French centre-right government under President Emmanuel Macron.

After the opposition in the National Assembly rejected the government’s proposal last week before the plenary debate, a commission of parliamentaries and senators sought a compromise.

The government is making significant concessions to the conservatives in order to secure their approval - which has caused resentment within its own left wing. Several members of parliament from Macron’s ranks voted against the bill.