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France’s budget deficit for 2023 will be “significantly” above target and further spending cuts will be needed, finance minister Bruno Le Maire said in an interview with Le Monde newspaper on Wednesday.
“Due to the loss of tax revenues in 2023, we will be significantly above the 4.9 per cent target,” Le Maire said. The €10bn in spending cuts planned for this year “are not about shaving down costs, but an emergency brake”, he added.
Next steps could include amending the budget in the summer and then finding a further €12bn in cuts in the government’s budget for 2025.
In February, the finance ministry said it was on track to cut the state deficit to 4.4 per cent of gross domestic product in 2024, down from the 4.9 per cent forecast for last year.
