Politics Court of Auditors: France's future government must make savings

France's Court of Auditors is extremely concerned about the country's growing debt and has called on a future government to return to responsible financial planning.

"France's situation contrasts sharply with that of its main European partners, which have managed to stabilize or even significantly reduce their deficits by 2023," the Court of Auditors stated in its annual report on public finances in Paris.

France must make difficult efforts to regain control of its public finances in order to meet EU requirements and ensure growth and social cohesion for future generations, it said. The EU Commission is already pursuing an excessive deficit procedure against France due to excessive new debt.

"Whoever governs France tomorrow, the next government will have to deal with this public finance situation", said Court of Auditors President Pierre Moscovici to France Inter. "It will have to reduce our debt", regardless of whether it is a left-wing or right-wing government. At the same time, growth must not be jeopardized and the tax burden must not be increased too much. Growing repayment obligations and interest rates are increasingly restricting the state's ability to act.

Following the parliamentary elections a week ago, France's future government remains open even after negotiations at the weekend. The victorious left-wing alliance has not yet succeeded in finding partners for a stable government or nominating candidates for the office of prime minister. President Emmanuel Macron's centrist camp, which suffered a defeat and finished in second place, has so far also failed to find partners for a governing coalition.

SDA