The Minister of the Economy Bruno Le Maire advocated on Tuesday “confidence in the French economy”, subject however to developments in the Middle East, and confirmed the avenues aimed at releasing a new billion euros in savings in the budget.
French companies are like households: very confident for themselves, very defiant for the French nation, he noted to the press during the presentation of the annual barometer from the ARC firm showing a renewed optimism among business leaders. company for their own activity, but a concern about a possible slowdown in the French economy.
This collective distrust has no reason to exist, according to the minister, even if the concern is legitimate when we are experiencing a moment of transition as occurs once in a century, marked in particular by the ecological transition.
Bruno Le Maire indicated that he would devote two or three meetings per week to the discussion with EDF on energy prices for 2024, and hope for an agreement in the days or weeks to come. We work in good harmony, he assured.
Now his growth scenarios for 2023 and 2024 (1% then 1.4%), he said he was lucid, recognizing that the entire copy would have to be reviewed if the conflict in the Middle East spread.
For Bruno Le Maire, we must support all efforts to avoid an escalation, including those of Emmanuel Macron traveling to Israel on Tuesday: it is good for the countries of the Middle East and it is necessary for our economy.
While the examination in committee of the expenditure of the 2024 budget in the National Assembly began this week, Mr. Le Maire, who wants to be uncompromising on debt reduction, hopes to have found the billion euros of savings he wants in addition to the sixteen billion already planned in the 2024 draft budget.
He therefore felt that we could look at what was happening on the personal training account (CPF). There are loud cries because we are asking for frankness (…), but it seems responsible and fair to me, he said.
Furthermore, we are working on the possibility of freezing [le montant des allgements de charges] between 2.5 and 3.5 SMIC: it’s a good proposal from the majority, I support it, he said.
In total, we already have a billion euros with these two measures which are not penalizing, according to him.
Asked about a possible doubling of the franchise on medicines, which rather emerges from the Social Security budget currently under debate in the Assembly, but could simply give rise to a subsequent decree, Mr. Le Maire indicated that he was in favor of it.
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