Taxes: Michel Barnier wants to affect “big companies” and “the richest”

2024-10-01 14:58:21

This is undoubtedly the most anticipated aspect of the public policy issue of the new Prime Minister Michel Barnier: the question of taxation. The new prime minister mentioned several “reforms” to reduce the “huge financial debt” which weighs like the “fragment of Damocles” on our finances. He also warned about the public deficit, which should “exceed 6%” of GDP this year and which “will be even higher” in 2025 “if nothing is done”.

The new tenant of Matignon warned about the debt rising to “3,228 billion euros”, which, “if we are not careful, this will bring our country to the brink”, he said. “Our responsibility is to make the burden and find room for budget wisdom”, by succeeding in “reducing the deficit to 5% in 2025” and returning “under the ceiling of 3% in 2029”, he said.

Emphasizing that public spending “has increased by more than 300 billion euros since 2019”, he calculated that “reducing spending means giving the illusion of everything free”, saying that he wants to do “including local communities” designations. He also emphasized the “effectiveness of public finances”: “Sometimes, our fellow citizens think that we can’t do that. it will not be enough for them “, he regretted.

“Participate in joint efforts”

To raise the bar, “the state of our accounts today requires a limited effort at the time which must be shared, in the question of tax justice”, emphasized the new tenant of Matignon. He announced that he would like “participation in the collective recovery of large companies that make significant profits”. Likewise, he indicated that he wanted to ask for “a special contribution from the wealthy French people to avoid tax exemption procedures for taxpayers”.

Also, “in the long term, we will fight completely against tax and social fraud, including by keeping special cards to avoid the wrong payment of benefits”, he also supports, also promises to guide ” hunting, inefficiencies, fraud, abuse of the system and unjustified rent.

“Serious and important choices on these budget questions” will be presented during the vote on the budget law, a word which “takes into account this need to correct the accounts” added the Prime Minister. He knew from the beginning of his speech that “we must do with less, in the economy of means and materials” but “start from strong France”.

This Tuesday afternoon, government spokesperson Maud Bregeon warned after the Council of Ministers that the reduction in public spending will be “many efforts” in the alternative budget for 2025, expected next week.

VideoThe deficit: “reduction of expenditure” will be “a lot of efforts”, assures Maud Bregeon

But “an effort, a dedicated and temporary effort” on taxation must be part of the “general solution”, he added, assuring that “there is no question of taking general tax increases”.