On the second day of budget review in the National Assembly, debates were lively on Saturday, October 25. The government, which promised not to resort to 49.3, suffered its first setbacks, facing an offensive right on fiscal matters and unexpected alliances.
Discussions are dragging on and measures on wealth taxation – including the now famous Zucman tax, defended by the left – should not be examined before next week.
Two victories for the right
This calendar de facto rolls back the ultimatum issued to Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu by the Socialists, who had demanded firm measures in favor of tax justice before Monday, brandishing the threat of censorship.
Saturday was especially marked by two victories for the right.
In the morning the deputies approved the tax exemption for all overtime, a “signal” sent to “working France”, celebrated the head of the LR group, Laurent Wauquiez, at the origin of the voted measure.
It will cost one billion euros, according to the Minister of Public Accounts, Amélie de Montchalin, who for her part asked to “orientate” the system more, which benefits, according to her, mainly the executives. This did not prevent a majority of Macronist deputies from voting in favor of the amendment, in unison with LR and RN.
In the early afternoon, a new blow from the right: the deputies adopted a second amendment by Laurent Wauquiez that proposes indexing the income tax scale to inflation.
The government’s proposed freeze on the scale would have had the effect of making 200,000 more households eligible for income tax and increasing the contribution of thousands more.
Amélie de Montchalin’s concern
The amendment by the leader of the right-wing deputies, which deprives the state budget of two billion euros, received the approval of a broad coalition that brings together the extreme right, the right, a part of the Macronists and the insoumis.
A multiplication of expenses that worries Amélie de Montchalin: if they continue, “we will have great difficulties in meeting our deficit reduction objectives,” she warned.
Echoing this, the governor of the Bank of France, François Villeroy de Galhau, assured that the degraded situation of public finances puts the country at risk of “progressive asphyxiation.”
The tax credit for personal services is questioned
The debates stalled at the end of the afternoon, when the left tried to cut the tax credit for personal services, one of the most expensive, increased in a few years from 4 to more than 7 billion euros, and which would mainly benefit, according to them, the richest classes.
The right and the far right strongly defended the system, believing it created jobs and combated undeclared work. The exchanges then became heated.
RN Jean-Philippe Tanguy accused the government of “buying the votes of the socialists.” “The French want us to deliver a budget before the end of the year. This requires commitments,” responded Amélie de Montchalin.
Next, socialist deputy Philippe Brun took the floor to question what “agreement” the LFI had made with “the LR” to exempt the richest from the effort with his vote on Laurent Wauquiez’s amendment. In return, LFI deputy Danièle Obono asked the socialists and the Government to communicate “the points of the agreement signed between them” and stated that she had “fully” assumed responsibility for the vote on opposition to the freezing of the tax scale.
“We are trying to find a landing site.”
Then, the head of the green deputies, Cyrielle Chatelain, accused the RN of prolonging the debates to avoid a vote on the Zucman tax, which Marine Le Pen rejected again on Saturday during a trip to the Vosges, specifying that the RN would only vote on its financial wealth tax, which exempts the main residence.
Regarding wealth taxation, “we are trying to find a landing point” with the socialists, a senior government official explains to AFP, specifying that talks continue.
The socialist deputies put on the table an “alternative” amendment that proposes establishing a minimum tax of 3% on high assets, starting at “10 million euros”, which aims to respond to the Government’s criticism by excluding family businesses and so-called “innovative” companies from the base.
Discussions on the revenue part of the budget are just beginning and the solemn vote on this part is scheduled for November 4.
Another condition imposed by the socialists for non-censorship is the suspension of the pension reform, included in the Social Security budget project, whose examination begins on Monday in committee. But the president of the Senate, Gérard Larcher, has already warned that the pension reform would be “reestablished” there, after the Assembly vote.
Source: BFM TV
