Michel Barnier stated, in an interview published online by The FigaroThursday, November 28, having decided not to “increase taxes on electricity” and reduce “significantly” healthcare covered by State Medical Aid (SMA) in the 2025 Finance Bill, which is currently being debated in Parliament but should be passed without a vote if the Prime Minister decides to use Article 49.3 of the Constitution.
On these two issues, the head of Government makes a clear gesture towards the National Group (RN). Marine Le Pen, with whom Barnier met on Monday in Matignon, as president of the parliamentary group of the National Rally, had mentioned the freezing of the increase in taxes on electricity and AME – including the far-right party that wants to abolish it – among other things. The main demands of his party are to consider not voting in favor of censure of the government in the coming days.
“ I have decided not to raise taxes on electricity in the 2025 finance billBarnier told the newspaper, denying having responded directly to the RN on this issue: “ Whether in my majority or in the opposition leaders I received: almost all of them asked me to evolve “, said.
“After years of increases, state medical aid, which costs €1.2 billion, is already stabilizing. We are not going to eliminate it, but the covered “care basket” will be significantly reduced.says Michel Barnier about SMA, always in Figaro. Before announcing: “We are going to begin a reform of the AME next year to avoid abuses and misappropriations. »
For several days, pressure on the government, threatened with censure in the National Assembly, has been increasing in a context of stagnant budget debates. The Minister of Economy and Finance, Antoine Armand, stated on Thursday morning that he was willing to do “concessions” on the budget texts, to avoid ” storm “ economic and financial that would result, according to him, from the fall of the government without a budget.
“Whatever the differences in values we have, today we face a very serious situation for the country. The Prime Minister spoke of a “storm”. It is not a word chosen at random, it is a word that has financial, economic and budgetary resonance, and we are obviously willing to make concessions to avoid this storm.declared Armand to BFM-TV and RMC, two days after Prime Minister Michel Barnier sounded the alarm on the “20 h” program on TF1.
The minister had already mentioned the electricity tax, the increase planned in the government’s draft budget is considered “inadmissible” by the National Assembly (RN). The RN deputies can decide the vote on a motion of censure, with their contingent of 140 deputies (including their sixteen allies from Eric Ciotti’s group).
This tax, which is one of the main provisions of the draft budget, authorizes the government to increase taxes to a level higher than that prevailing before the tariff shield against inflation. It is supposed to raise 3.4 billion euros. While the government highlights a 9% reduction in the French electricity bill, thanks to the fall in wholesale prices on the market, the RN maintains that it would be even greater without this increase.
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On Thursday, Antoine Armand warned all groups tempted by the vote of a motion of no confidence, while the left-wing parties allied in the New Popular Front (NFP) – PS, LFI, PCF and Ecologists – promised to present one as soon as the Prime Minister makes use of article 49.3 of the Constitution to allow the approval of the State and/or Social Security Budgets in the Chamber.
