Politics France's budget passed - votes of no confidence fail
The months-long struggle in France over this year's budget is over. The minority government under Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu survived two further votes of no confidence by the opposition in the National Assembly over the budget dispute. Only 260 and 135 out of 577 MPs respectively withdrew their confidence in the centrist cabinet. The 2026 budget is therefore officially adopted - and the government remains in office.
02.02.2026, 20:29
SDA
The votes were requested by the left, the Greens and the Communists on the one hand and Marine Le Pen's right-wing nationalists on the other. They objected to the fact that Lecornu had pushed the budget for the current year through the National Assembly without a final vote using a special article of the French constitution. He had actually wanted to do without such a procedure, which is often criticized by the opposition as undemocratic. Despite lengthy negotiations, however, no compromise was found on the budget.
Positive signal for the economy and the EU
According to the text that has now been adopted, the budget deficit of the highly indebted country is to be reduced to five percent of gross domestic product. Even though there were originally more ambitious targets for an austerity budget, France's economy and partner countries in the EU are likely to welcome this. EU deficit proceedings are currently pending against France due to its debts.
In recent weeks, Lecornu and his government have already survived four votes of no confidence relating to parts of the budget. Because Lecornu had secured the support of the Socialists by making concessions, it was already expected that he would not lose their trust. Lecornu's predecessors François Bayrou and Michel Barnier had left office in parliament in a dispute over budget issues. Now President Emmanuel Macron's confidant can devote himself to other issues: A small government reshuffle is likely to be on the cards, for example, as some cabinet members such as Culture Minister Rachida Dati are running for positions in the French local elections in March.
