A compromise budget without compromise. France will not be able to vote on the budget before the end of the year

On Friday, representatives of the two chambers of the French parliament failed to agree on a compromise version of the draft budget for 2026. This means that the project will not be adopted before the end of the year. The government is preparing a draft special act extending the provisions of this year's budget for next year.

The failure of the work of the commission, consisting of representatives of the National Assembly and the Senate, was announced in a press release. This result is not a surprise due to the significant differences between the version of the bill after modifications in the Senate, where the right wing has a significant influence, and the expectations of the left-wing opposition in the lower house.

The special act, which will be submitted to parliament at the beginning of next week, is to extend the assumptions of this year's budget – so as to ensure the functioning of the state despite the lack of a budget act. France found itself in the same situation a year ago, during the government of the previous prime minister, Francois Bayrou. Discussions on the actual budget are to be resumed in January 2026.

Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu announced that he would start meetings with representatives of political forces from Monday to analyze further actions. His colleagues said that the head of government would try to build a compromise himself, which the parliamentarians failed to reach in the committee on Friday.

The issue of passing the budget is the biggest challenge for the minority government of Lecorn, which is constantly threatened – like previous governments – by a vote of no confidence from the opposition. The fall of the government would most likely mean early parliamentary elections. Moreover, France needs a budget to control its out-of-control budget deficit and public debt.

From Paris Anna Wróbel (PAP)

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