The French Prime Minister François Bayrou said in advance that he would surprise in the presentation of the state budget for 2026. On Tuesday he realized his promise: one of his measures to save a total of 43.8 billion euros is the scrapping of two official days off. Bayrou presents Easter Monday and 8 May of the VrijEdagenkalender. Research has previously shown that scrapping a day off annually 2.4 billion euros yields because this increases production.
France has eleven official days off, two more Then the Netherlands. Bayrou wants to delete Easter Monday because that day would have “no religious meaning”. On May 8, France celebrates the surrender of Nazi Germany to the Allies. According to Bayrou, that day the French can get better back to work because “May a real one Gruyère (hole cheese) has become ”: In May, French have three days offwhere many workers enjoy a day extra so that they have a long weekend.
The proposal leads to a lot of criticism and calling for street protests. The radical-left parliamentarian Sarah Legrain Says on X that it is not smart to abolish the commemoration of the victory over Nazism while fascism is in full revival. ” The chairman of the radical-right Rassemblement National Jordan Bardella finds that The measure “an outright attack is on our history, on our roots and on working France”.
Read also
French Prime Minister Bayrou lashes into the press and researchers in interrogation about abuse case
A ‘White year’
Bayrou announced more far -reaching cuts. After all, the French national debt was 3,345.4 billion euros at the end of the first quarter of this year. This amounts to 113.9 percent of the gross domestic product. The prime minister therefore also wants a “solidarity contribution” for “the most fortunate.” In other words: the richest French have to pay more taxes – although it is unclear what this should look like. He also wants to increase the fight against the proliferation of tax constructions that some well -to -do French use to increase their capital.
With this Bayrou, a center politician who leads a predominantly right -wing minority government, meets left -wing parties. They blamed the government and President Emmanuel Macron to make the richest richer richer for ages. Since macrons came to power in 2017, the capacity of the five hundred richest households has grown from 500 to 1,200 billion euros – partly as a result of a number of tax measures favorable for them.
If François Bayrou does not look back on his text, we will vote him away
Less happy will be the left -wing parties with Bayrou’s plan for one Année Blanche to set. Tax rates, social benefits and pensions are not indexed during such a ‘white year’. With this, according to Bayrou’s calculations, 7 billion euros can be saved, but the measure affects all layers of society – and especially the people with the lowest incomes. Bayrou also wants to reduce the number of civil servants, among other things by not filling one in three posts of civil servants who are retiring. Compared to neighboring countries, France has relatively many officials: according to OECD figures from 2021 Work 21 percent of French in the public sector (in the Netherlands that is 12 percent).
Bayrou has also confirmed that France is going to invest heavily in his armed forces. Macron announced this on Sunday evening Already: the president wants 3.5 billion euros in 2026 and in 2027 an extra 3 billion euros for defense. This would be necessary because, according to him, “freedom was never threatened so much” since the end of the Second World War in 1945. Although Bayrou is about the budget as a prime minister, he could only follow Macron’s announcement.
Read also
After verdict, Marine Le Pen cannot be a presidential candidate in 2027, but: “I don’t let myself be eliminate”
Political chaos on the lurking
As expected, the budget plans immediately lead to a lot of criticism from both the left and the radical-right opposition-the first threats with a motion of no confidence are pronounced. The question is whether the opposition will join forces to drop the government – as she did with Bayrou’s predecessor Michel Barnier in December. This allows the parties to show their dissatisfaction and increases the chance of new parliamentary elections where they can hope for more seats.
But a government trap would also mean another summer with political uncertainty after Macron suddenly dissolved the parliament last summer and France was without a government for weeks. And for the Rassemblement National, the largest opposition party, new elections mean that the leader Marine Le Pen loses its parliamentary seat because of its recent conviction for fraud with European money. Le Pen itself pretends that this is not a role. On X she says on Tuesday that “the government attacks workers and pensioners.” “If François Bayrou does not look back on his text, we will vote him away.”