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French Lawmakers Prepare Final Vote on 2026 Social Security Budget
The Dec. 9 vote follows warnings from the French government that rejecting the social security bill could leave the country without a budget heading into 2026.
A general view of The National Assembly, France's lower house parliament, during a session on the postponement of the general renewal of the Congress and Provincial Assemblies of New Caledonia, in Paris, on Oct. 22, 2025. Alain Jocard/AFP via Getty Images
French lawmakers are set to vote on France’s 2026 social security budget on Dec. 9, capping a fractious week in Parliament as Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu worked to hold together a fragile minority coalition and avert what he said would be a slide into uncontrolled spending.
The social security financing bill (PLFSS), which accounts for more than 40 percent of overall public-sector outlays and covers welfare, healthcare, and pensions, is a central component of France’s annual budgeting process, which runs from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31.
Lawmakers have 50 days to debate the PLFSS and issue their opinion, following its submission to the National Assembly on Oct. 14.
Lecornu said on Dec. 4 that France risked losing control of social security spending if the bill failed.
He insisted the government would not invoke Article 49.3, a constitutional measure that allows a bill to pass without a vote, saying Parliament must approve the legislation.
Without a social security budget, he said, France was “heading straight for a 30 billion euro ($34.9 billion) deficit and a loss of control.” He told lawmakers that an achievable 20 billion euro ($23.3 billion) shortfall depended on securing parliamentary support.
To win backing from Horizons, a center-right party led by former Prime Minister Edouard Philippe, Lecornu agreed to raise a tax funding social security by a smaller amount than originally planned.
He also scrapped proposed increases to health insurance deductibles to satisfy Socialist lawmakers.
On Dec. 5, the National Assembly approved taxes to finance the 2026 social security system. Lecornu welcomed the outcome, saying it reflected collaborative work and compromises among various political groups.
France's Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu speaks during a parliamentary debate on the 2026 budget at the National Assembly, France's lower house parliament, in Paris on Oct. 31, 2025. Alain Jocard/AFP via Getty Images
Budget Minister Amélie de Montchalin said that the bill addressed the urgent healthcare needs of the French people.
In a Dec. 8 post on X, she said that voting it down would “postpone the expectations of the French people and the healthcare system,” calling that “inconceivable.”
Speaking to French news broadcaster BFM TV on Dec. 9, she said that the 20 billion euros ($23.3 billion) of the projected 2026 social security deficit included costs related to a major package of healthcare reforms, launched in 2020, and support for aging and dependency care.
Fragmented Landscape
Asked about the outcome of the vote, de Montchalin said she had no certainty about what lawmakers would decide.
“I can’t tell you, these are decisions for 577 members of parliament who have a choice to make ... but I think the French are fed up with being told about the budget,” de Montchalin said.
Philippe, the Horizons leader, told French TV news channel LCI on Dec. 8 that he would not instruct his lawmakers to back a budget “that is not in the interest of the French people.”
Bruno Retailleau, head of The Republicans party, said on Dec. 8 that the bill was “simply unacceptable,” calling it “one of the worst in years.”
Economic, Political Backdrop
France is under pressure to reduce its deficit amid slow growth and high debt.
The European Commission forecast on Nov. 17 that French GDP would expand 0.7 percent in 2025 and 0.9 percent in 2026, with inflation edging higher and the government deficit narrowing only gradually to 4.9 percent of GDP in 2026.
Public debt is projected to reach 120 percent of GDP by 2027.
The political landscape has also been volatile. Lecornu, 39, considered a centrist ally of President Emmanuel Macron, resigned as prime minister on Oct. 6 after 27 days following his appointment before being reappointed on Oct. 10.
His predecessor, François Bayrou, was ousted in a no-confidence vote in September amid deep tensions between the National Assembly’s three ideological blocs.
Evgenia Filimianova is a UK-based journalist covering a wide range of international stories, with a particular interest in foreign policy, economy, and UK politics.
