The executive is currently working on developing a budget for 2025, of which France is deprived due to the censorship of Michel Barnier's government on December 4. The new version of the budgetary text should be based on less favorable macroeconomic forecasts, while Michel Barnier wanted to reduce the public deficit to 5% of gross domestic product (GDP) this year, after an expected slippage to 6.1% in 2024 He had also retained in his draft budget a growth forecast of 1.1% compared to the previous year.
In an interview with “La Tribune Dimanche”, the Minister of the Economy, Eric Lombard, specified that the deficit would be included in the budgetary text at “a little above 5%” of GDP, “in order to protect growth”.
Unconfirmed figures
Asked about a landing of the deficit at 5.4% of GDP this year, as well as annual growth revised downward to 0.8% according to the newspaper l'Opinion, the Ministry of the Economy and Finance replied that he did not confirm these figures “which are the subject of work and discussions as part of the development of the 2025 budget”. “The forecasts for deficits (or growth) will be specified during the presentation of the budget,” the same source added, specifying that this would take place after François Bayrou's general policy speech on January 14, without however give a precise date.
In the absence of a budget, tax measures which had been proposed by the previous government cannot be renewed as such, underlined “Le Monde” on its website, in particular the surtax on the profits of large companies, supposed bring in 8 billion euros in 2025.
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