Saralnama
France is facing a political crisis as Prime Minister François Bayrou's government may lose a confidence vote on 8 September. Left and far-right parties plan to bring down the government. The country has no approved budget yet, and the rising budget deficit is a big concern. The government wants to cut spending by €44 billion to reduce the deficit from 5.8% of GDP to 4.6% in 2026. However, public debt is expected to rise from 113% of GDP in 2023 to over 120% by 2030. President Emmanuel Macron has warned that the years of easy money are over and raised the retirement age from 62 to save money. Economists say the political crisis may slow economic growth but is unlikely to threaten government solvency soon. Growth is expected to be low, around 0.6% in 2025 and 0.9% in 2026. The government may try to change the budget to get support from the Socialist party, but this looks difficult. The crisis shows France’s struggle to manage its economy and public finances. (Updated 27 Aug 2025, 19:57 IST; source: link)