Michel Barnier is faced with the difficulty of reducing public spending

2024-10-30 04:19:00

Prime Minister Michel Barnier at the National Assembly, 23 October 2024. JULIEN MUGUET FOR “THE WORLD”

The tough budget test for the government continues. After transforming the first part of the 2025 budget, dedicated to revenues, by adding taxes for tens of billions of euros, deputies began to rework the second part, the one dedicated to expenses. Many expected savings are called into question and expenses are added, with changes of 10 million, 100 million or 300 million euros.

On Monday 28 October, the agricultural budget was increased by 830 million euros in just a few hours, the elected representatives of the New Popular Front (NFP) rejoiced. The social and solidarity economy and La Poste also received a boost. Then, on Tuesday, MPs canceled with the stroke of a pen the 4,000 job cuts planned in the national education sector, the largest reduction planned in the public service. Before generalizing the rate of one euro per meal in the Crous to all students, for an estimated cost of 90 million euros per year.

“The battle for a NFP-compatible budget continues well,” on drums Eric Coquerel, president (La France insoumise) of the finance commission. This is just the beginning. In the coming days, the examination of government amendments aimed at reducing the pay of sick public employees will especially unleash the left. In addition to the freezing of retirement pensions for six months and the reform of exemptions from employers’ contributions, two proposals which should bring in 8 billion euros and which risk being torpedoed during the session.

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Some of these changes to the government’s initial plan will certainly be canceled after the budget process, in the Senate and then in the joint committee. Especially if Michel Barnier takes responsibility for this important text. These first weeks of discussion, however, highlight the extreme difficulty in France of limiting public spending.

The “singularity” of the French social model

In 2017, candidate Emmanuel Macron pledged to reduce them to less than 52% of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2022, notably by eliminating 120,000 public service jobs. Since then, however, the number of public employees has continued to increase and, according to Eurostat, spending by the state, social security and local authorities now represents more than 57% of GDP. The highest rate in the entire European Union. At the end of the 1950s they represented only 35% of GDP.