Drama at the Palais Bourbon: the National Assembly approved on Monday November 4, with the votes of the left, a profoundly revised version of the “revenue” part of the 2025 Social Security budget, the Macronist and right-wing deputies having voted against. The amended text, which notably provides for 17 to 20 billion additional contributions according to the deputies, was adopted at first reading with 126 votes “for” and 98 “against”. “Amazing !” the LFI group welcomed in a press release, seeing in this vote the “new failure of Emmanuel Macron and Michel Barnier”.
The National Rally, which said it was fundamentally opposed to the government’s copy as well as to the “fiscal nonsense” imposed by the left, abstained so as not to put a premature end to the debates. The rejection of the “revenue” part would in fact have led to the rejection of the entire text.
In the evening, the deputies were able to continue their work by beginning the examination of the “expenses” part of the text. They notably decided that Covid tests can no longer be reimbursed without a medical prescription, and removed a system proposed by the government aimed at making the reimbursement of certain procedures, medications or medical transport subject to a document established by the health professional establishing the “reasonableness” of the prescription.
Still 530 amendments to examine
Due to the deadlines set by the Constitution – the examination of the Social Security Financing Bill (PLFSS) must be completed no later than midnight on the night of Tuesday to Wednesday – they are however not sure of to complete this project, while 530 amendments remained to be examined at the close of the debates late Monday evening.
PS deputy Jérôme Guedj said he was ready to withdraw amendments, and asked the government to “reverse” by Tuesday afternoon the order of the articles examined, so that the most controversial points of the bill , and in particular that relating to the freezing of retirement pensions, be examined as a priority.
The approval of the “revenue” part comes as a surprise, especially since this part of the text – which concerns some 600 billion euros – had previously been unanimously rejected in the Social Affairs Committee. By notably increasing contributions on capital income or dividends, “the left of this chamber has found majorities to fill the Social Security coffers, while the right has deployed all its efforts to empty them”, commented the rebellious Elise Leboucher. She was referring to the revolt of elected officials from the right and the center who last week rejected the increase in employer contributions, to the tune of four billion euros, wanted by the government coalition that they are nevertheless supposed to support.
“Collusion of populism”
The left “rejected the 15 billion euros in wild and unjust cuts” requested by the government, to replace them with 20 billion “in contributions, contributions and taxes, only on the big fortunes, the high salaries, the private creditors and delinquent multinationals”, welcomed the LFI group in a press release. Among the new recipes, deputies approved on Monday a reform of the “soda tax”, intended to limit the quantity of sugars in this type of drink.
On the side of the government coalition, the deputies took turns to castigate a text “emptied of its meaning and of any seriousness, political and budgetary”, as summarized by François Gernigon (Horizons). The new taxes and contributions do not target the “rich people”, but “the working middle classes”, lamented Thibault Bazin (LR).
After the vote, the president of the MoDem group Marc Fesneau expressed his annoyance: “when you have RN and NFP voting together, you can see that it is the collusion of populism”. “In the end, the government will say ‘see, all this is not reasonable, we will leave it to the Senate because they are responsible and reasonable people'”, he added.
A little earlier, the left had also obtained a symbolic victory on the flammable subject of pension reform, by having amendments adopted which modify an appendix of the text by repealing the increase in the legal retirement age from 62 to 64 years old. These votes, however, are not definitive, as the PLFSS is only just beginning its parliamentary journey and because of the probable use by the government of article 49.3 which will allow it to retain the amendments of its choice in the final text.