Lecornu's government scores an initial victory with the provisional approval of part of the budget

BarcelonaFrench Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu scored his first victory on Tuesday, albeit a partial and provisional one. The National Assembly voted in favor of the 2026 Social Security budget, which includes the suspension of the pension reform that was the flagship policy of Emmanuel Macron's second term. In today's vote, which is not yet final, the bill received 247 votes in favor and 234 against.

Those who voted Yeah Those who voted in favor were mostly Macron supporters, socialists, and some members of the moderate right, while the deputies who voted against were primarily from Marine Le Pen's far right and Jean-Luc Mélenchon's La France Insoumise. The bill will now have to return to the Senate, and then it will need final approval in the lower house. Le MondeThe final reading in the National Assembly is scheduled for next Tuesday, in a vote that is also expected to be very close.

Lecornu, who was appointed for the second time a week apart on October 13Lecornu promised to put pension reform on hold to satisfy the left's main demand and avoid another no-confidence vote. For now, he has passed the first hurdle, but that doesn't mean he's safe. The Social Security funding bill could get bogged down in the next votes. And if next year's budget isn't approved, the government could once again be in danger of falling. The budget must be enacted before December 31 to comply with the deadlines imposed by the Constitution.

Lecornu has chosen to celebrate his first victory and applauded the result. "This responsible majority shows that compromise isn't just a slogan: it allows us to move forward in the general interest," he said on his Twitter account. However, he lamented that "certain groups," which he didn't name, "have locked themselves into systematic opposition." "They proclaim themselves the voice of the people, but they prefer to sabotage, including their own causes," he criticized, reproaching them for "choosing cynicism over patriotism."

Concessions to save the government

The prime minister has abandoned the parliamentary mechanism that allowed him to adopt the budget without a vote, in order to avoid another vote of no confidence, after France had six heads of government in three yearsLecornu's biggest concession has been to suspend the pension reform. the most important policy passed during Macron's second termwhich raised the retirement age to 64. It has also agreed to increase public spending on healthcare, despite the critical situation of the French state finances.

During the last few weeks, he has made other concessions, especially to the socialists, and also to the environmentalists, who in Tuesday's vote abstained in the majority and, therefore, were one of the keys to the provisional approval of the Social Security financing law.