French Justice Minister Calls for Three-Year Halt to Migration

French Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin has proposed a three-year moratorium on legal migration, saying France has reached the limits of its capacity to integrate new arrivals and should focus more attention on those already living in the country, Apollo News reports.

Darmanin said the issue was not one of ethnicity but of respect for the French Republic, its laws and values. He criticised the lack of willingness among some migrants to integrate, and called for tougher action against those facing deportation and restrictions on family reunification for holders of work visas.

France issued around 4.5 million residence permits last year, a third of them linked to family reunification.

(mja)