France’s interior minister has signaled he will push for tighter immigration policies as the far right seeks to use a gruesome murder to put pressure on the government.

Addressing the arrest of a Moroccan man for the murder of a 19-year-old female student, Bruno Retailleau said on Wednesday that the “abominable crime” required not just rhetoric, but action, as far-right parties demanded when commenting on the case.

“It is up to us, as public leaders, to refuse to accept the inevitable and to develop our legal arsenal, to protect the French,” Retailleau said. “If we have to change the rules, let’s change them.”

The hardline rhetoric on migration is not new from Retailleau, a member of the conservative Republican party who has previously advocated for stricter immigration rules and quicker deportations.