France is cracking down on medical aid for undocumented immigrants in a move to save over £150million. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu on Sunday approved plans to make it harder for illegal migrants to access state-funded healthcare.

Mr Lecornu’s decree sought to justify the move by arguing it will strengthen efforts to combat fraud, leading to “potential” savings of 180 million euros (£156.8million). He told Nice-Matin that France‘s Aide médicale d’état (State Medical Aid, AME) system was “absolutely essential”, but needed reform.

AME provides access to healthcare for people in France whose immigration status is irregular. It is granted based on requirements over residency and income.

Right-wing politicians in France have been pressuring the Élysée Palace to rethink the policy.

France’s PM said on Sunday: “We are taking action. I have just signed two decrees reforming AME… The first decree strengthens the fight against fraud, with potential savings of €180million.

“The second finally modernises the government’s IT systems so that all civil servants handling the case can access them.”

On top of announcing his reforms, Mr Lecornu pledged that a pilot scheme using artificial intelligence would speed up the processing of residence permits in five French prefectures.

Mr Lecornu said plans to tackle the flow of migrants from 24 countries would also be introduced to handle deportations and visa applications.

But French far right leader, Marine Le Pen, suggested the move would only see AME continuing to act as a pull factor for illegal migrants.

She wrote on social media: “By refusing to reconsider the AME from which illegal immigrants benefit… the Prime Minister is worsening one of the key factors driving migration attractiveness, whose exorbitant cost to public finances (over €1.3billion) is no longer tolerable.

“French people, whose out-of-pocket expenses keep rising, no longer accept these absurd schemes.

Ms Le Pen said residence permits granted for medical treatment allow foreigners to receive free care in France for extremely costly treatments, placing a “severe” burden on the healthcare system.

She said a large majority of French people want the scheme to be limited to emergency care only.