Vote of confidence, public holidays... What to remember from François Bayrou's interview

François Bayrou once again justified his decision on Sunday to seek a vote of confidence from the National Assembly by the fact that "no courageous policy is possible" without "the minimal consent of the French people and those who represent them."

"If there is no minimal agreement, no agreement on the diagnosis, then the situation is presented as being the power against the French, the top against the bottom (...) You are obliged to retreat on each of the measures," he argued.

The Prime Minister also considered that the "question" at stake was not "the destiny of the Prime Minister" but that of "the destiny of France" .

"If the government falls, it means that we will abandon the policy that I consider vital for the country" for "another" policy that is "more lax", "more adrift" , he warned.

Open to discussion on public holidays, maintaining the 44 billion euros in savings

While François Bayrou will be meeting with party leaders who wish to do so from Monday, he has once again said he is open to negotiation "if they wish" on the most unpopular measures in his 44 billion savings plan, such as the elimination of two public holidays.

"I think it could be a (day) without difficulty if we want to discuss," he said.

But he dismissed out of hand the options put on the table by the Socialist Party, which "volunteered" to succeed him at Matignon, and which proposed a budgetary effort half as large in 2026, involving an increase in revenue and a tax on high net worth individuals.

"The Socialist Party's proposals mean that we are doing nothing" to reduce the debt, he dismissed.

"I never said we should target boomers."

François Bayrou had pointed to the "comfort of the boomers" when he was questioned on Wednesday about the reasons for the increase in debt.

These remarks had caused controversy and which the Prime Minister has since retracted. "When we were 20 Before [the boomers] , France had zero debt and magnificent growth. When you are a country that has no debt, you can launch policies, the TGV, airplanes, and it was easy to find work. (...) We did not have this debt burden on our backs. I never said that we should target the boomers. I said something very specific, very simple and very serious: this generation should be with me to reduce the debt of the youngest."

"Two directions" for immigration policy

"I don't like the situation in the country being presented as being the consequence of the presence of immigrants ," said François Bayrou, in opposition to the proposals of the RN, which sees the fight against immigration as a way to make savings in the next budget . "If there are advantages for foreigners that the French would not benefit from, I would agree to look at them."

He also explained that he was "absolutely convinced" that immigration policy must " evolve in two directions" , particularly with regard to the "capacity to control entry and exit from the territory".