Transcript Jamie Hall on France - University of Exeter

La France
History
Party System
State
Dual Executive
Legislature
Judiciary
Overview
• Like Britain, one of oldest states in Europe
• Like Britain, geographical and political identity established
since Middle Ages
• Like Britain’s Westminster Palace, the Palace of Versailles
has remained the symbol and seat of government for
hundreds of years
• Like Britain, a major Euro power, extra Euro interests and
permanent seat on UN Security Council
• Like Britain, a constitutional democracy with universal
suffrage, free elections, independent courts, accountable
govt., welfare state, mainly urban population (85%)
But…
It is important to stress these similarities,
because France’s political institutions and
arrangements can appear very different
from those of its European neighbours…
… Britain especially…
• Most significant is France’s long tradition
of constitutional instability – it is on its 17th
regime since the Revolution in 1789
• Equally important is the relatively large role
played by the state in French politics and
society – demonstrated by the vast array of
government ministries, and the centrality of
the state the political vocabulary
Why has this come about…?
• History, stupid.
• What history?
• The French Revolution?
– What about the pre-Revolutionary monarchy’s role in
establishing the political and administrative identity?
• The French Revolution?
– What about the fact that France was the dominant
European power throughout the 18th and 19th Century?
Nonetheless, the Revolution
remains the defining moment in
French history
• Bastille day is STILL celebrated (date?)
• Revolution carried out in the name of the Rights
of Man, still at the forefront of the constitution of
the Fifth Republic (author?)
• Ancien Regime had been based on the division of
society into estates: 9/10ths in the ‘3rd estate’
• Revolution brought citizenship instead
(sanscoulotte slogan?)
Legacy…
• Unlike the USA, Revolution failed to create a consensual
and unifying myth
• Numerous factions began to accuse others of betraying the
values of the Revolution
• Disagreements over economic and social policy
• Even conflict over the constitutional form of the new state:
constitutional monarchy Vs Republic Vs Empire
• Legacy:
- 4 separate regimes since 1940
- the Paris Commune of 1968
- the array of contenders to the presidency at each election
1799-1875
• 1799:
- Napoleon Bonaparte
- Declared France an Empire and himself Emperor
- Tried to take over the World
• Finally put out to pasture by Wellington’s forces in 1815
• 1815-1870:
- Same pattern of a Monarchy giving way to a Republic giving way
to an Empire, this time under Napoleon Bonaparte III
• 1875:
- Foundation of 3rd Republic
1875-1940: 3rd Republic
• Followed surrender of Napoleon 3rd after FrancoPrussian war
- Watershed: End of Bonapartism, plebiscitary politics,
and monarchism
• Far from consensual:
- 1894: Dreyfus Affair (?)
- 1924 and 1937: 2 failed attempts to instigate left wing
governments
• Collapsed in 1940 with the Nazi invasion
– Quiz question: what came next?
1944-1958:
th
4
Republic
• de Gaulle, leader-in-exile, invited to head the new government
• Created a constituent assembly to compose new constitution
- This comprised representatives of numerous parties, and saw much
disagreement on even its most basic principles: e.g. gaullists wanted
strong leadership while others wanted constitutional checks
- de Gaulle eventually lost patience with Parliamentary stalemate and
resigned from French politics
• However, though unpopular and short-lived, the 4th Republic did
witness some progressive legislation:
- votes for women, nationalisation of industry, state economic planning,
social reform (e.g. holiday pay and wage increases)
• Nonetheless, divisions plagued its existence: 25 governments in 12
years; no stable majorities; technocrats more powerful than politicians
etc….
• …and then there was Algeria
1958: Algeria
• Algerian nationalists vied for independence
• By May 1958, French govt. unable to cope
- 13th May: coup in Algeria by French generals
determined to keep Algeria part of France
- 29th May, President Coty begged de Gaulle to
return to politics as PM
- de Gaulle accepted on provision that he had full
powers for 6 months and compile a new
constitution
General de Gaulle and the
foundation of the Fifth Republic
• de Gaulle was the natural choice: war hero, untainted by failure
of 4th Republic, and had the support of the Army
• Like Petain, he was determined to use the crisis to force through
constitutional reform
• Convinced that political problems could be solved by
strengthening the Executive
• Got N.A. to grant him the power to compose new constitution,
which was sealed over the heads of the N.A. through
referendum
- Removing decision making from the N.A. has been a characteristic
of French politics ever since
- Future president Francois Mitterrand compared his 5th Republic to
Napoleon III’s coup d’etat against the 2nd Republic in 1851
The 5th Republic – How Was it
Different?
• Despite Mitterrand’s condemnation, de Gaulle’s 5th Republic was
grounded in the principles of the Revolution:
• The preamble to the constitution reiterates the Declaration of the
Rights of Man, and secures the social freedoms instigated under the
4th Republic
• Article 2 confirms the the commitment to the symbols of
Republicanism (flag, anthem, separation of Church and State)
• Article 89 states that Republicanism cannot be done away with,
and reserves to Parliament the right of constitutional amendment
• Finally, Article 20 states that the govt. is ultimately responsible to
the N.A. – a fundamental principle of Republicanism
The 5th Republic – How Was it
Different? (Cont…)
• However, if the 5th Republic incorporates elements of France’s
Republican heritage, its provisions depart from traditions in
significant ways:
• Most significantly, de Gaulle was determined to end
‘Parliamentary Sovereignty’:
• to end the confusion and stalemate of the N.A.
• to curtail Parliament’s right to determine its own agenda
• to end Parliament’s monopoly over law making through
procedures for referenda, the creation of a Constitutional
Council
• and to remove Parliament’s right to elect the President – this
was conferred upon an electoral college of some
80 000
members
The 5th Republic – How Was it
Different? (Cont…)
• Furthermore, de Gaulle was equally determined to strengthen
the role of the Executive:
• President made Head of State, head of armed forces, guarantor
of judiciary and president of the High Council of the
Magistrature
• President and PM granted a number of ‘prerogative powers’
• Nonetheless, the 1958 constitution IS Parliamentary, and both
the PM and the President have clearly defined roles. Moreover,
there is, in theory, nothing to prevent the PM from using a
majority in the N.A. to determine national policy over the head
of the President
History: Overview
• 1st Republic (1792-99)
- Popular sovereignty
- Declaration of the Rights of Man
- Inauguration of more secular power
• 2nd Republic (1848-52)
- Universal male suffrage
- Election of President by popular vote
• 3rd Republic (1875-1940)
- Disestablishment of the Church
- Executive made responsible to Parliament
• 4th Republic (1944-1958)
- Weak Executive, strong Parliament
• 5th Republic (1958-)
- largely General de Gaulle’s creation
- Strong Executive, weak Parliament
THE PARTY SYSTEM
Legacy of Revolution
• 16 candidates in the first round
- contrast this with UK (4) and US (3)
• Fundamental and traditional split between left and right (quiz: origins
of left and right?)
• don’t overstate left-right split: increasingly inaccurate with ‘centrists’
and ‘independents’; plus need for further distinction between
conservative right and the extreme right
• Moreover, ideational underpinnings of left and right have shifted in
recent years (?):
• Right used to be associated with the desire for a greater role for the
Church whereas the Left was traditionally secular; today the divide has
more to do with socialism versus free market philosophy (although,
generally, the French right favours more of a role for the state than
other European rightist factions)
• Nonetheless, recent research does show that voting behaviour still
follows broad affiliations with either the left or right
The State
A Strong State?
• This is the perception: though associated with the left, even the French
right promulgates the value of a strong state:
‘ The Republican state is an impartial state, one that guarantees cohesion
and solidarity between citizens, between generations, between all parts
of the territory,’
(Chiraq, 1995)
• The ideal of the strong French state has both a normative and a
traditional basis:
• Normative basis pre-dates Revolution (Saint-Simon and Comte
advocated state-led social progress). The Revolution made flesh
these values and they survive to this day
• In more practical terms, the belief in the strong state is
witnessed in the strength of the civil service as the expression of
public interests; post-war economic policy; and the bewildering
array of state-centred organisations (1988: 31 ministers and 17
junior ministers)
The ‘Myth’ of the Strong State…
•
Though grounded in Republican rhetoric
celebrating the state as the expression of national
will, the French state has often failed to respond
adequately to needs arising
• In short, 2 of the most basic assumptions on
which the ‘myth’ of the strong state is built, are
overstated:
1. The state is not a cohesive unit, and is hampered
by bureaucracy and internal competition
2. The state does not act independently of civil
society, and has traditionally championed PPPs
The Dual Executive
Overview
• Semi-Presidential style
• Differs from other states, e.g. Germany,
where president is just a figurehead
• Pres. Selects PM from the dominant
Parliamentary Party
– Potential for conflict between President and
Prime Minister when the dominant Party in the
N.A. is opposed to that of the President
(Cohabitation)
Presidential Powers
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‘Discretionary Powers’: 8 areas
Appointment, but not dismissal, of PM
Right to dissolve N.A.
Freedom to resign, provoking presidential election
Chair of Council of Ministers
Right of Emergency Powers
Right to submit Bills to N.A.
N.B. In contrast to the perception of Presidential power,
these discretionary powers are either one-off prerogatives,
or only applicable at pre-programmed intervals, or during
national emergencies
Prime Ministerial Powers
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Quiz: Who is the French PM?
Jean Pierre Raffarin…
…PM also has some ‘discretionary powers’
Right to send Bill to Constitutional Council
Chairs Council of Ministers when President is absent
Responsible for day-to-day running of government
Represents the Executive to Parliament
– Arbitrates interministerial competition and therefore has
greater influence with ministers
• Finally, PM has discretionary power over 2ndary legislation
(Parliament passes around 70 laws a year, PM passes around
8000 interministerial decrees)
Shared Powers
• In defence, foreign policy and judiciary
• Greatest potential for conflict in these areas
• E.g. President Mitterrand and PM Fabius
disagreed in 1984 over Mitterrand’s planned
meeting with Polish Communist leader
• Generally, President has greater influence than
PM. President ‘sets the tone’ for policy, while the
PM ‘gets on with it’
• Only rarely and in instances of cohabitation can
PM-President conflict present a barrier to policy
formulation and implementation
The Legislature
Senate
• Indirectly elected
• Has in-built conservative majority (small rural towns
over-represented)
• 321 senators
• Elected for 9 years by electoral college of deputies and
local councillors (150 000 members)
• Complex and unrepresentative electoral system means
Senate has become focus of much debate over
Parliamentary reform
• Nominally has same powers as N.A. – both must
approve a bill before it becomes law – but in the very
last resort it is the N.A. that has the final say
National Assembly
• 577 deputies
• Directly elected for 5 year term by a two-ballot majorityplurality system
• Larger parties are over-represented, as the electoral system
deviates from proportional representation (like Britain)
• Some of the larger parties have manipulated the system – 1985:
the Socialists introduced a proportional system for 1986 election
only to return to previous system the following year
• Again, this lack of proportionality has led to calls for reform –
particularly from the Greens
• Weakness: Under the 4th Republic N.A. was strong, under the
constitution of the 5th Rep it is weak: restricted “domain of law”
(Article 34) which does not include foreign policy, for example;
and its limited capacity to hold the administration to account
(Article 16: Presidential right to emergency powers)
The Judiciary
Overview
• Unlike the famous separation of powers in the US
(Executive, Legislature, Judiciary), the French
tradition has been very different
• Exec. and leg. seen as expression of popular will,
and therefore superior to judicial branch
• Result: belief that government should control the
judiciary
• This has been changing gradually, and the
judiciary is becoming a more independent branch
of government
• Nonetheless, still manipulated by all sides for
political ends
Constitutional Council
• 3 distinct elements: constitutional law, administrative law, and
civil and criminal law
• CC is highest constitutional authority: determines
constitutionality of bills, treaties etc.
• Designed in 1958 to support the Exec., in 1970s it emerged as a
political actor in its own right
• Comprises 9 appointees, 3 chosen by president of Republic, 3 by
president of the N.A., and 3 by president of Senate
• Serve for a non-renewable 9 year term and cannot hold other
offices
• Intention is to remove members as far from party-political
interests as possible
• Nonetheless, candidates are invariably selected by the 3 electors
on the basis of their political leanings
La France
– History 
– Party System 
– State 
– Dual Executive 
– Legislature 
– Judiciary 