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French Senate Proposes Up to €50 Billion in 2026 Budget Cuts to Hit EU Deficit Target

Senators detailed measures to freeze social benefits, gel state credits along with tightened anti-fraud schemes ahead of the government’s July 15 budget presentation.

Les sénateurs du socle commun ont présenté ce lundi plusieurs mesures d’économies pour 2026 au premier ministre.
La majorité sénatoriale vise une fourchette comprise entre 30 et 50 milliards d'euros.
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Overview

  • The Senate majority aims for €30–50 billion in 2026 budget savings to meet the EU mandate of reducing the deficit to 4.6 percent of GDP.
  • Socle Commun’s plan features measures including a social benefit freeze, ministry credit cuts and a hiring freeze of one in two civil servants.
  • Union Centriste sketched a €24 billion savings roadmap centred on an ‘année blanche’ without presenting it as a full counter-budget.
  • Both outlines envisage gelled state budget credits, excluding defense, debt service and EU obligations, for €10 billion in cuts.
  • Senators also propose tightening fraud-fighting measures, notably CumCum, and freezing the income tax scale as the government readies its budget on July 15.