The executive plans in particular to curb spending on unemployment insurance and does not rule out tougher taxation of energy companies’ “super profits”.
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Bruno Le Maire is “open to all debates” to rebalance France’s accounts. The public deficit reached 5.5% of gross domestic product in 2023, according to figures published Tuesday March 26 by INSEE, well beyond the 4.9% on which the government was banking. Despite this gap, the Minister of the Economy maintains his “determination to restore finances public”, he assured on RTL, in order to come back below the European objective of 3% by 2027.
In addition to the 10 billion euros in savings already announced at the start of the year, “extra efforts” will need to be done to achieve this target. Bruno Le Maire pleads for the organization of a “collective debate” in order to “decide how the savings will be made”. A debate on the direction of public finances will also be held in the National Assembly on April 29. Although the details of future savings and new revenues have not yet been decided, several avenues for reflection are on the government’s table.
Tax the super profits of certain companies more…
In the majority, voices are being raised to convince the executive to increase tax revenue. The President of the National Assembly, Yaël Braun-Pivet, wishes “start thinking” on a contribution “exceptional” large companies in the event of “superprofits”or“superdividends”. An idea supported for a long time by the MoDem, an ally of the presidential party.
“The question of recipes is not taboo”assured Tuesday on France 2 the Minister of Public Accounts, Thomas Cazenave, insisting on the “super profits generated by energy companies”. For now, the government only seems open to increasing the contribution on the inframarginal rent (CRI), an exceptional tax launched in 2023 on the profits of energy companies, inflated in recent years by the rise in energy prices. This tax did not bring “only 300 million” euros in 2023, “ten times less than what was planned”castigated Bruno Le Maire on Tuesday during a press briefing.
These declarations come after the publication of a report from the Court of Auditors, on March 15, which underlines that this system does not generate revenue “at the height of what would be fair to consumers” and suggests that the government “propose to Parliament to change the scope and methods of calculating the CRI for 2024, in order to increase its yield”. “We will support all the initiatives of the majority to recover part of this pension”confirmed Tuesday Thomas Cazenave on France Inter.
… but “without going to dig into the pockets of the French”
“I refuse this easy solution, a reflex that we have had for 30 or 40 years in France, which is to say, as soon as things go badly for the public accounts: ‘It doesn’t matter, the French will pay'”however reaffirmed Bruno Le Maire. “We can perfectly make savings on public spending without digging into the pockets of the French, and I remain totally opposed to any increase in taxes on our compatriots”he insisted.
Asked about the tax cuts promised by Emmanuel Macron to the middle classes from 2025, Thomas Cazenave for his part assured that supporting their “purchasing power” And “their salary” remained on the agenda. “It is the president’s commitment [de] reduce the taxes that weigh on them by 2 billion euros”, recalled the Minister for Public Accounts.
It is also about “reexamine social contributions, the activity bonus”. On this topic, “work is in progress” and he “will give rise to proposals in a few weeks”promises Thomas Cazenave.
Curb health spending…
To restore public accounts, the government is mainly focusing on reducing spending. “Half of public spending (…) is social spending”noted Bruno Le Maire on Saturday in an interview with South West. The tenant of Bercy, for example, welcomed the doubling of the franchise on medicines on Tuesday on RTL, from 50 cents to 1 euro, which will come into force at the end of the month. “VS’is a way of saying that medicine cannot be ‘open bar'”he justifies.
If there is no question of repaying less well “people who are seriously ill”Bruno Le Maire estimated Tuesday morning that “the person who is in good health and who consumes medicines or who carries out a lot of medical analyzes must undoubtedly contribute more”. The minister also pointed out in the columns of South-West “medical transport” Who “cost more than 5 billion euros per year”. “Wouldn’t there be savings to be made?”he asks.
On the other hand, the government does not intend to return to 100% coverage of care for patients suffering from long-term illnesses (ALD), France Télévisions learned in recent days from those close to the Minister of Health. health. Similarly, reimbursement of medical care based on patient income “is absolutely not in the government’s work path”, assures Bercy.
…and unemployment insurance expenses
“The more French people we have working, the more possibilities we will have to balance our finances”said Gabriel Attal on Tuesday before the National Assembly. To replenish the state coffers, the government wants a new reform of unemployment insurance. In February, the Prime Minister had already expressed his desire to review the compensation rules to establish “a less expensive and more efficient social model”.
The executive plans in particular to further reduce the duration of compensation for the unemployed, already lowered from 24 to 18 months since February 2023. “We need an unemployment insurance system where we affect the duration and not the amount of compensation”Bruno Le Maire recently argued.
Efforts required of communities and state operators
Finally, the Minister of the Economy called Tuesday on RTL at “a collective awareness of the need to make choices in all our public spending”, citing in particular local authorities. “NOTWe have no reason to be blamed for a manifest budgetary slippage which is the sole responsibility of the State.”castigated the first vice-president of the Association of Mayors of France to AFP. “L“The State must stop considering communities as subcontractors and their budgets as adjustment variables”judge André Laignel.
Bruno Le Maire is also committed to “write to all state operators” of which “the treasuries are doing well”, citing for example the National Cinema Center or Business France. He will ask them to formulate under “a month” of the “savings proposals” on their budgets.