Europe06 October, 20263 min read
Marine Le Pen Promises 140 Billion Euros Net Savings, Deficit Below 3% By 2030
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Le Pen proposes 140 billion euros net savings by 2032. Deficit targeted below 3% of GDP by 2030.
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Le Pen’s savings plan
Marine Le Pen presented Tuesday a plan to restore France’s public accounts, warning, "If the French do not choose a political rupture, France is headed for default." Marine Le Pen said she was increasing the required adjustment to 140 billion euros net in savings in 2032 compared with 2026, while hoping "not to be forced to raise this threshold again if a new deterioration of the situation were to occur before May 2". Marine Le Pen said her policy would restore primary balance in 18 months and achieve a public deficit below 3% in 2030, while also assuring that public debt would be 112% versus 119% today.
Marine Le Pen proposed a constitutional budget rule to be submitted to a referendum, and she said, "I propose to the French to allow only a public deficit below the stabilizing threshold of French debt". Marine Le Pen also said the deficit ceiling would be at least 0.5 percentage point below the stabilization threshold "as long as the debt exceeds 60% of GDP."
VAT, pensions, and ECB
Marine Le Pen said she would reduce taxes by at least 30 billion euros net, including a reduction in production taxes of -20 billion planned and "the reduction of paper taxes" with "the end of the administrative multi-layering parallel to simplified regulation." Marine Le Pen said she would present "corrections of unjust or ineffective measures of the current retirement system" to generate between 15 and 20 billion euros in savings in the long term, in order to fund reform and reduce the deficit left by Emmanuel Macron. Marine Le Pen said she favored bringing the retirement age back to 62, or even 60, and she indicated she would present "a major reform of individual and collective capitalization" and that she would "soon propose the creation of a true pillar of capitalization,".
Marine Le Pen argued that the ECB must intervene so Eurozone countries have financial room to invest in sovereignty, and she said, "The ECB must intervene so that the Eurozone countries free up financial room to invest in our sovereignty, namely defense and catch-up in technology,". Marine Le Pen also set a carbon neutrality target, committing to "100% carbon neutrality" by 2050 and describing her energy approach as a structural reform.
Deficit targets and EU
Marine Le Pen said she wanted to bring France’s budget deficit down to 3% by 2030, while keeping the objective of staying below the European 3% limit in 2029. Marine Le Pen said the government plans for this year a deficit representing 5.4% of gross domestic product (GDP), and she said the government anticipates 5% in its 2027 finance bill. Marine Le Pen said she would reduce France’s contribution to the European Union budget to five billion euros against nearly 29 billion planned for this year, and she framed the move as part of a broader savings trajectory.
Marine Le Pen told reporters that the policy she would pursue would restore a primary balance in 18 months and then achieve a public deficit below 3% in 2030, and she said, "France is heading towards default." Marine Le Pen said she would centralize VAT revenues, abolish "more than 120 ridiculous or useless taxes," and no longer validate or automatically renew expenses "from one year to the next without the approval of the minister of public accounts."