World News: French Budget Bill Stymied By Presidential Politics
- Details
- Category: Haute This Issue
- Published on Wednesday, 09 September 2026 09:48
- Written by Olivier Longhi
The need to finalize the finance bill before September 30 reveals the extent to which the welfare state is experiencing a growth crisis associated with the instrumentalization of the latter by presidential candidates, without concern for the general public.
This is an unappetizing subject but oh so imperative as it highlights the weaknesses of the Welfare State and reveals the appetites of the pretenders to the supreme office, namely the Nation's budget. In other times, a simple legislative formality that would have ratified the State's spending and revenues, the 2027 budget, currently in preparation, is giving rise to various comments on how the Prime Minister will manage to complete it.
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Because the obstacles are legion: Sluggish growth, heat wave and drought with devastating effects on agricultural production, energy crisis with a barrel of oil that is playing a roller coaster, multiple geopolitical tensions and unemployment that is on the rise again, far from the promises of full employment of the President of the Republic.
However, these same obstacles have never really hindered the preparation of the budget in the past, except that in this case, it is clear that, in view of the current debt (€3,565 billion as of 9 September 2026, i.e. nearly 118.5% of GDP, which amounts to €2,646.7 billion), the expenditure component will have to be studied by the deputies.
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Logic
Income tax, which brings in about €95 billion per year, barely covers the interest on the debt, estimated at €74 billion for 2026, (i.e. the first item of expenditure after retirement pensions and higher than the defense budget).
To say that the welfare state is in crisis is therefore an understatement, as logic imposes a reality: the state spends too much. However, the allegation, which is summary and decontextualized, does not necessarily take into account the social or material needs that generate the expenditure observed. It would then be more accurate to argue that the state spends public funds badly.
The debate is not new but highly flammable and opening it would consist of attacking the relevance of public spending because it requires us to take an interest in all the expenses that the state satisfies. A report by the Court of Auditors published in July established that social benefits, without having to be called into question, should be subject to more consistency in their allocation and calculation. It also seems surprising that the body responsible for scrutinizing the nation's balance sheet is never, or very rarely, followed in its recommendations. The reason?
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General interest
Precisely the fact that he frees himself from all political conceptions and orientations on the question of the budget, which leads us to note how much the budget, which should be in the general interest, has become the hostage, which is nothing new in itself, but which is currently taking on a different dimension, from the race for the presidential election.
Between Jean-Luc Mélenchon who wants to "burn the debt" without attacking the roots of it, Edouard Philippe who wants to extend the duration of employment to save the pension system, Marine Le Pen who wants to lower the VAT rate on energy in the hope of reviving growth and increasing the purchasing power of the French, among other proposals, none of the contenders for the Elysée proposes a new reflection on the overall functioning of the Welfare State.
So, what is the outlook for the coming months? As the country must have a financial action plan by December 31, 2026 at the latest, and the Finance Bill must be tabled in the National Assembly on September 30. And if not? Then the Expenditure and Revenue components will remain identical to those that prevailed in 2026, at the risk of seeing the debt soar even more. And from a crisis of the Welfare State, we will move on to a financial or even regime crisis. The countdown is on...
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Bio: Olivier Longhi has extensive experience in European history. A seasoned journalist with fifteen years of experience, he is currently a professor of history and geography in the Toulouse region of France. He has held a variety of publishing positions, including Head of Agency and Chief of Publishing. A journalist and recognized blogger, editor, and editorial project manager, he has trained and managed editorial teams, worked as a journalist for various local radio stations, was a press and publishing consultant, and was a communications consultant.
