French Audit Office Proposes €2.7 Billion in Budget Savings for 2025

The Cour des Comptes outlines measures to phase out pandemic-era spending and reduce the deficit while avoiding harm to growth and public services.

The Cour des Comptes, led by Pierre Moscovici, has presented 12 proposals to save €2.7 billion in 2025, with further reductions projected by 2027.
Key recommendations include limiting apprentice hiring subsidies, reducing the bonus for eco-friendly vehicles, and revising tax credits for childcare and travel expenses.
The report emphasizes the need to end pandemic and inflation-related aid programs, arguing that the crises justifying them have largely subsided.
Moscovici stressed the urgency of reducing France's public deficit, targeting a drop below 5.5% of GDP in 2025 and under 3% by 2029, as promised to the EU.
The Cour des Comptes plans to release additional targeted spending reviews in 2025, including an upcoming analysis of healthcare expenditures.