French Prime Minister François Bayrou unveiled deep spending cuts Tuesday in an effort to rein in France's burgeoning deficit, with proposals including scrapping two public holidays, limiting tax breaks for the wealthy and slashing civil service jobs, reports FRANCE 24.
Bayrou detailed his effort to slash €43.8 billion from France's budget in a highly anticipated speech on Tuesday, warning that excessive debt is a “mortal danger” for the country and that France is now facing a “moment of truth” regarding its financial situation.
"It's the last stop before the cliff, before we are crushed by the debt," Bayrou said in a speech to MPs, cabinet members and journalists.
The prime minister added that debt is increasing by €5,000 every second.
"It's late but there is still time," Bayrou said, adding that France was addicted to public spending and had to change.
He said the French must not forget the experience of Greece, which went through a full-blown debt crisis over a decade ago and needed multiple international bailouts and years of tough austerity policies to get back on its feet.
The cuts involve reducing the number of civil service workers and a "solidarity contribution" for "the wealthiest" as well as the abolition of tax breaks for business expenses for pensioners. Bayrou added that welfare benefits and income tax brackets would not be adjusted for inflation in 2026.
He also proposed scrapping two public holidays, citing for example Easter Monday and May 8.
A national holiday in France and across Europe, May 8 holds historical significance as it commemorates the surrender of Nazi Germany in 1945, marking the end of World War II.
The prime minister stressed that over-indebtedness is a curse not only for families and businesses but for the entire country. He warned that relying on borrowing every month just to pay pensions or civil servants’ salaries is a dead-end, emphasising the urgency of addressing the issue before it spirals out of control.
France’s public deficit reached 5.8 percent of GDP in 2024, totalling €168.6 billion — well above the maximum allowed by European Union rules.
To address this, Bayrou outlined significant budget cuts worth tens of billions of euros, aiming to gradually reduce the deficit to 5.4 percent of GDP this year, 4.6 percent in 2026, and ultimately bring it below the 3 percent EU threshold by 2029.
President Emmanuel Macron has left Bayrou the task of repairing public finances with the 2026 budget after his own move to call a snap legislative election last year delivered a hung parliament too divided to tackle spiralling spending and a surprise tax shortfall.
Read more of this report from FRANCE 24.