Budget: Renaissance MP Thomas Cazenave welcomes a "courageous" and "balanced" plan to restore public finances

On Tuesday, François Bayrou presented a €43.8 billion budget cut for 2026, including the elimination of two public holidays and a freeze on social benefits and pensions.

The economic plan presented by François Bayrou to achieve €40 billion in savings in the 2026 budget is "courageous" and "balanced," Gironde MP Thomas Cazenave (Together for the Republic), a member of the National Assembly's Finance Committee and former Minister Delegate for Public Accounts, said on franceinfo on Wednesday, July 16. The Prime Minister's plan includes the implementation of a budgetary "blank year," the elimination of two public holidays, and a "solidarity contribution" for the highest incomes.

"These measures are not popular, but they are essential if we want to straighten out the public accounts," argues the elected representative from Gironde, who recalls that he himself supported, when he was in government, the measure of a "blank year" in the budget, consisting of freezing the growth of public spending for one year: no revaluation of the RSA, APL, retirement pensions and freezing the tax scale. A proposal that he "continues to defend." According to him, "in a context of low inflation," this freeze allows "everyone to contribute" - retirees, social assistance recipients, working people - while preserving a "reasonable contribution" from everyone. "It is a way of ensuring balance and sharing of the effort," says the deputy.

Faced with criticism of the plan's "brutality," Thomas Cazenave retorted: "The real brutality would be to do nothing and end up like a number of countries that have faced financial crises and have had to cut retirement pensions, cut civil servant salaries, and reduce purchasing power."

While the opposition is considering filing a motion of censure as soon as the new term begins, the former Minister Delegate for Public Accounts deplores their attitude: "On the National Rally side, for years, they have been telling us that we need to straighten out public finances, but they are against all the savings measures that are being put forward. On the La France Insoumise side, they ultimately want us to straighten things out only by increasing taxes by more than 40 billion."

According to Thomas Cazenave, this plan "is the first basis for discussion. There will be parliamentary work to be undertaken. There are naturally issues that need to be discussed. We need clarification on the two public holidays, for example. This is a measure that deserves to be clarified. Will there be a benefit in terms of salary?"

To avoid the scenario of last autumn, marked by the absence of a voted budget and institutional uncertainties, the Macronist MP calls for "the parliamentary dialogue that is opening up, and for the responsibility of the government parties in particular, to allow François Bayrou to complete the budgetary discussion and provide the country with a precise budget" .