France’s lower house almost unanimously rejected the income section of the budget bill on Saturday, November 22nd, throwing more uncertainty onto whether the divided parliament can pass an austerity budget by year’s end.
France is under pressure to cut its budget deficit, but efforts have been hamstrung by political instability since President Emmanuel Macron called snap elections last year, leading to a fragmented parliament.
The National Assembly voted down the part of the budget bill that deals with taxation with 404 votes against after 125 hours of debate—an unprecedented level of rejection since France’s Fifth Republic was set up in 1958.
Only one vote was for, with 84 abstentions—many from the government’s camp.
The bill now passes to the Senate and then to a joint parliamentary committee tasked with reaching a compromise.
If both chambers cannot agree on the budget bill by the end of the year, the government can push it through by decree or extend the 2025 budget temporarily to allow for further debate.
Despite the setback, ministers on Saturday expressed optimism that an agreement was still possible.
