LIVE. 40 billion in savings, "efforts" to be made... Bayrou presents the 2026 budget plans

François Bayrou proposes to sanction debtor companies "up to 1% of their turnover."

François Bayrou's speech had not yet ended, but Jordan Bardella had already denounced the abolition of the two public holidays. "No RN MP will accept this measure, which is provocative," he wrote on Twitter.

François Bayrou wants "a tax on small parcels to protect our businesses and producers from the tide of unfair competition that is assailing them."

François Bayrou intends to "resolve" the issues of simplification for businesses "by decree" this autumn.

As part of his "Let's Get Production Going" plan, the Prime Minister denounces "the excessive bureaucratic procedures that stifle not only businesses, but also households and individuals."

Prime Minister François Bayrou will propose to social partners that they open negotiations on unemployment insurance and labor law, in particular to "facilitate recruitment" and increase job offers, he announced on Tuesday.

The head of government wishes to launch "a new project on unemployment insurance," emphasizing that "many analyses indicate that it bears responsibility in its current organization," and a second on labor law "to improve working conditions for all, facilitate recruitment (and) increase job offers where possible."

Prime Minister François Bayrou proposed on Tuesday the elimination of "two public holidays," citing "Easter Monday" and "May 8" as examples, while saying he was "ready to accept or examine others," during the presentation of his plan for the 2026 budget.

"It's not at all the same thing" as "a day of solidarity where we wouldn't really check whether it was being carried out or not, and which would only result in levies on businesses," the head of government added at a press conference, saying he wanted to "fight" "disenchantment with work."

The Prime Minister intends to abolish the tax exemption for professional expenses for retirees.

Prime Minister François Bayrou announced on Tuesday the creation of a "solidarity contribution" for the "wealthiest" French people, stressing that "the nation's effort must be fair" to restore public finances.

This contribution "must involve the highest incomes in the national effort," he said, also recalling his desire to "fight against the abusive optimization of non-productive assets."

"We will hunt down unnecessary and ineffective tax loopholes," says François Bayrou.

François Bayrou announced on Tuesday the submission "in the autumn" of a bill "against social and tax fraud" to "better detect it, punish it and recover lost money."

The Prime Minister also said he wanted to take action on "tax and social security loopholes that primarily benefit the wealthiest households and large companies." He first said he wanted to "hunt down useless and ineffective tax loopholes, starting with those that are about to be phased out."

He also considered that "professional expense benefits for retirees are not absolutely justified." "But small and medium-sized pensions should not be affected," he said.

François Bayrou announced on Tuesday a freeze on the tax, social security and pension scales in 2026 in order to limit the increase in spending by "seven billion euros."

"We will have exactly the same pension amount for each pensioner as we had in 2025," he said. "All social benefits will be maintained at their 2025 levels in 2026, and there will be no exceptions," he added.

"The income tax and general social security contribution scales will also be maintained at their levels this year," he added.

François Bayrou believes that "it is time to put an end to the downward spiral" in terms of sick leave. Except in cases related to occupational illnesses or accidents at work, it will now be general practitioners or specialists, and no longer exclusively occupational physicians, who will assess fitness to return to work, he announced.

Regarding healthcare spending, François Bayrou announced "a far-reaching reform of the treatment" of long-term illnesses. Starting in 2026, measures will be put in place to end 100% reimbursement of medications not directly related to the reported illnesses.

He also emphasizes that "greater efficiency and effectiveness" will be expected from the hospital, particularly in terms of purchasing and thanks to the development of outpatient medicine. "It makes sense," he believes, "to be able to save money by pooling or sharing purchases."

One in three civil servants retiring will not be replaced "for the coming years," François Bayrou also announced.

"We are going to eliminate unproductive agencies that are dispersing state action," announces François Bayrou.

State spending will be frozen in 2026 at the 2025 level, excluding defense and debt service.

The effort to reduce the public deficit in 2026 will reach 43.8 billion euros, more than the 40 billion initially mentioned, to take into account the increased military spending decided by Emmanuel Macron, François Bayrou announced on Tuesday.

"The State has set itself the first rule of not spending more to the nearest euro in 2026 than in 2025, with the exception of the increase in the debt burden and additional spending on the armed forces budget," the Prime Minister declared at a press conference. He also established "a rule of not replacing one in three civil servants retiring (...) for the coming years."

The "stop debt" plan must follow several principles, according to François Bayrou: "The plan involves, above all, the stabilization and reduction of public spending," he said.

“Everyone will have to participate in the effort given the scale of the challenge; there is no question of making only a few pay.”

Then, "the labor and skill of our businesses must be spared as much as possible to be bearable for all. It does not impose a cut in public sector wages, nor a cut in retirement pensions. It slows the growth of spending, but does not eliminate it, and it does not cause a recession."

The Prime Minister launched the presentation of the plan dubbed "Stop the Debt," a four-year budget recovery program. He described it as "realistic" and assured that it was "achievable."

The plan aims to gradually reduce France's public deficit: estimated at 5.4% of GDP in 2025, it would be reduced to 4.6% in 2026, then to 4.1% in 2027, 3.4% in 2028, and reach 2.8% in 2029. According to the Prime Minister, this threshold marks a turning point, because "in a country like ours, the debt then stops increasing." He compares this dynamic to that of a ship regaining its buoyancy, carried "like boats by the tide of growth."

François Bayrou announced two "action plans," one to "say no to debt" and the other to "get production going." François Bayrou also confirmed the increase in the defense budget of €3.5 billion in 2026 and €3 billion the following year, as announced by President Emmanuel Macron.

François Bayrou warned Tuesday that over-indebtedness was a "curse" and that France was at "a moment of truth" in this regard. "Every second, France's debt increases by €5,000," the head of government noted at the start of his press conference on the main thrusts of the 2026 budget.