Fewer civil servants and more taxes: the main lessons of the 2025 budget

The government unveiled its draft budget for 2025 on Thursday evening. Objective: reduce the deficit to 5% of GDP next year. The result is a colossal effort of 60 billion euros with 40 billion in reductions in public spending and 20 billion in tax increases targeted at large businesses and the wealthiest households. This text will now be examined in Parliament in an explosive political atmosphere. The government is already trying to play appeasement and assures that the copy will be able to be modified.

“This is neither an austerity cure nor a tax bludgeon”

The bill, which is steep to say the least, is difficult to convey to the French, but the Minister of Public Accounts, Laurent Saint-Martin, speaks of a path of responsibility. “We must make courageous choices now to avoid painful choices later. This is neither an austerity cure nor a tax draconian,” he said.

Being responsible rather than popular is the philosophy put forward by Michel Barnier. Perhaps a way of preparing minds for a 49.3 which seems inevitable at this stage, in the face of angry opposition and strong tensions within the LR-Macronie alliance itself.

A “perfectable” project

Despite everything, the Minister of the Economy, Antoine Armand, reaches out to parliamentarians. “We are now at the disposal of the national representation so that the parliamentary debate can lively, also so that proposals can be made to improve this project which can obviously be improved,” he declared.

And faced with a government breaking the taboos of macronism on tax increases, the President of the Republic appeared in retreat during the council of ministers, confides a participant. Faced with furious opposition and strong tensions within the LR-Macronie alliance, the use of 49.3 seems inevitable to pass this 2025 budget.