French Prime Minister François Bayrou has unveiled a comprehensive plan for sweeping financial reforms designed to tackle the nation’s burgeoning budget deficit. However, the National Rally’s Marine Le Pen is already threatening to topple the government after the details were announced.
A key component of these reforms involves the elimination of two public holidays: Easter Monday and Victory Day (May 8th). Additionally, the government plans to introduce a new solidarity contribution for its wealthiest citizens.
“We must as a nation work more,” Bayrou said.
Le Pen has been propping up Macron’s minority government over the last weeks, which requires at least one party to vote alongside it to pass laws. However, she was quick to trash the budget proposals, noting that there are no cuts to the billions flowing to France’s exploding foreign population.
“After seven years of catastrophic mismanagement, Emmanuel Macron and François Bayrou are incapable of making real savings and present yet another bill to the French: nearly 20 billion euros in taxes and deprivations. No savings on the cost of immigration, subsidies for uncontrolled intermittent energies, seven billion in increased contributions to the European Union, nothing on bureaucracy in hospitals or education,’ she wrote.
“This government prefers to go after the French, workers and retirees, rather than hunt down waste. As for boosting production, apart from eliminating regulations in collaboration with grassroots stakeholders, as proposed by the National Rally, these are mere pious wishes. If François Bayrou does not revise his approach, we will censure him,” she added.
During his announcement, Prime Minister Bayrou issued a stark warning about the nation’s rapidly growing debt, stating it was increasing at a rate of €5,000 per second. He described the current financial situation as “the last stop before the abyss,” stressing the urgent need for France to curb its public spending, which he believes has become excessive.
The government’s austerity measures are projected to generate a total of €44 billion. This will be achieved through various initiatives, including reducing public employment as well as implementing spending and cuts across numerous sectors.
In 2024, France’s public deficit reached 5.8 percent of GDP, significantly surpassing EU limits. The government’s objective is to progressively reduce this deficit to 5.4 percent in 2025, 4.6 percent in 2026, and ultimately below 3 percent of GDP in subsequent years.
However, the implementation of these reforms faces potential obstacles due to a divided parliament. The National Rally has already voiced its opposition to Bayrou’s proposals and is calling for another no-confidence motion against his administration. The prime minister has successfully survived eight such votes to date.
President Emmanuel Macron is urging parliament to take responsibility and support increased defense spending by at least €6 billion. These changes are expected to be incorporated into the draft budget for 2026. This initiative likely stems from France’s defense and security doctrine, which anticipates the possibility of a large-scale armed conflict in Europe by 2030, namely over claims that Russia could invade further into Europe. France, however, acknowledges that a full-scale war with Russia on its own territory is unlikely.