The Minister of Public Accounts, Amélie de Montchalin, urged, Sunday November 23, in an LCI broadcast/The Parisian to reach a compromise on the budget, which she still believes is feasible, and warned against the prospect of a special law (which simply consists of renewing the budget from the previous year) to ensure the continuity of public finances.
The minister said she believed “possible compromise”citing in particular the favorable vote on the revenue part of the social security finance bill. “There are no alternatives to finding a budget other than a parliamentary compromise and a vote”according to the minister, who dismissed the prospect of using article 49.3 or ordinances to adopt budgetary texts by emphasizing that the Prime Minister, Sébastien Lecornu, was opposed to these two solutions.
Either the rejection of the budget occurring during the night from Friday to Saturday is “a stage and a difficult moment in the construction of a compromise which is necessary for the country”either “this is the moment when political forces, some out of cynicism (…) let themselves go by not taking responsibility in the construction of the compromise”which would be a “weakening of France”declared Amélie de Montchalin, worrying in such a case about a risk of “financial and economic crisis which will be very serious”.
“We put ourselves in a position where we weaken ourselves”
The examination of the “revenue” part of the state budget by the Senate Finance Committee is due to begin on Monday. After the almost unanimous rejection of the text in the National Assembly, the hypothesis of a special finance law is taking shape. She is judged “most likely” by the president of the finance committee of the National Assembly, Eric Coquerel (LFI).
The special law consists of a sort of renewal of the 2025 budget which would make it possible to collect existing taxes before resuming parliamentary debates at the start of the year. But it is a “parachute of last resort”estimated Amélie de Montchalin. It is “a tool” to avoid “the defect” payment of the State and communities, which makes it possible to continue paying creditors, civil servants, social policies, she underlined, but such a text means “no savings, no investments, we put ourselves in a position where we weaken ourselves”. Brandishing the special law today would amount to “to acknowledge now that we are not capable of reaching an agreement” et “that we don’t want to compromise”said the minister again.
