BERTRAND GUAY / AFP
Pierre Moscovici, president of the Court of Auditors, photographed in Paris on April 8, 2025.
ECONOMY – The countdown is launched, and François Bayrou did not really have the leisure to press the chronometer button. It was Pierre Moscovici who launched the race this Wednesday, July 2 at the end of the day when the Court of Auditors published its annual report on public finances. Ten days before the Prime Minister revealed his roadmap concerning the 2026 budget for which the executive set out to make 40 billion euros in savings.
While the president of the Court of Auditors have called for weeks to initiate structural reforms, the new report is final: “ France has just crossed two dark years in public finances “, Who call for” A resumption of control » « difficile » et « demanding ».
The synthesis is not particularly tender with the follow -ups that have succeeded themselves: ” Too favorable hypotheses », « Inability to the dynamics of expenditure », et « to initiate efforts ». And this, even though the 1920s, 2024 were not marked by particular crises, unlike the previous ones marked by the COVVID, the inflationary and energy crises, and the war in Ukraine. “” We are now on the first step of a podium that I do not wish for France: our deficit is the highest in the euro zone », Cingle Pierre Moscovici.
And to point out the repeated warnings of Cambon Street in the urgency of reforming in depth, while it is it, it will now be necessary to achieve more than 100 billion euros in savings by 2029 to reach 3 %. While it was only 50 billion a few years ago.
Too optimistic forecasts, too temporary solutions
Especially since the Court still deems the growth hypotheses retained for the period 2026-2029, and that public spending increases are envisaged in the defense sector. As for 2025, it hardly believes in a miracle, since the reduction of the deficit that year ” rests exclusively on significant tax increases, almost half of which are announced as temporary ».
For the first president of the institution, which is not particularly in favor of a white year, a solution deemed too temporary, it is necessary “The voluntary effort now”, at risk of “Austerity suffered tomorrow”. Pierre Moscovici, who says he has no ” taboo “On taxes, however, calls for a look at the management of expenses:” No level of public authorities should be away from the nation’s effort ».
Bercy began this week to receive parliamentarians from all sides to discuss the 2026 budget and invite them to make proposals by the start of the school year. On the left this Wednesday, the rebellious deputy Éric Coquerel was fake against the report of the Court of Auditors, seeing there ” in reality a budgetary orientation with which [il n’est] disagree ».
The Prime Minister is all the more awaited in mid-July as a parliamentary commission deemed very optimistic the 2 to 3 billion euros in savings targeted by Amélie de Montchalin, thanks to the merger or abolition of state agencies. Key minister for the creation of the 2026 budget, it keeps as a red line any tax line. The same as that of the RN so as not to censor François Bayrou. Good accounts may be good friends, but not necessarily those on Cambon Street.
