France's budgetary situation is 'very serious', new PM Barnier says

NEWS WIRES

18 September 2024 at 4:45 am·1-min read

France has a "very serious" budgetary deficit, Prime Minister Michael Barnier said, weeks after France was placed on a formal procedure for violating European Union budgetary rules. Barnier, who was appointed to lead the French government on September 6 after months of political deadlock, has previously suggested tax rises to help stabilise finances.

France's budgetary situation is "very serious", Prime Minister Michel Barnier told AFP on Wednesday, saying more information was needed to gauge the "precise reality" of French public finances.

France was placed on a formal procedure for violating European Union budgetary rules before Barnier was picked as head of government this month by President Emmanuel Macron.

And the Bank of France warned this week that a projected return to EU deficit rules by 2027 was "not realistic".

France's public-sector deficit is projected to reach around 5.6 percent of GDP this year and go over six percent in 2025, which compares with EU rules calling for a three-percent ceiling on deficits.

"I am discovering that the country's budgetary situation is very serious," Barnier said in a statement to AFP.

"This situation requires more than just pretty statements. It requires responsible action," he said.

(AFP)

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