PARIS (Sputnik) — French presidential hopeful Marine Le Pen described on Tuesday as a tragedy uncontrolled immigration to the country and vowed to put an end to it if elected.
"In the first few weeks [of my presidency] I will introduce a moratorium that will draw a line under immigration. I consider immigration a tragedy for our country as we have 9 million people out of jobs and 7 million living in poverty," she told the TF1 broadcaster.
The leader of the far-right National Front said immigrants created "unfair competition" for French workers. She promised to prioritize French nationals when allocating social housing and give them jobs.
Speaking at a campaign rally in Paris on Monday night, days before this Sunday’s voting, Le Pen criticized mass immigration to France from the Middle East and North Africa and promised to introduce tough immigration rules.