unsurprisingly, Elisabeth Borne scores 49.3 in the revenue section

2023-11-23 18:31:00

Unsurprisingly, Elisabeth Borne scored yet another 49.3 this Thursday, while the executive does not have an absolute majority in the National Assembly. The Prime Minister thus held her government responsible for the revenue part of the Social Security budget, which was examined by the deputies at second reading.

“The social security financing bill is the very heart of our social model. He brings together and protects the French. We cannot take the risk of depriving them of it”justified the head of government in a short statement from the podium of an Assembly with sparse ranks.

On November 16, while the draft Social Security budget was being examined by the Senate, dominated by the right-wing opposition allied with the centrists, the latter rejected the government’s multi-year trajectory. However, a symbolic vote since it was expected that the executive would respond with a 49.3.

Budget 2024: following the litany of 49.3, the executive’s facade concessions

The Social Security financing bill (PLFSS) provides for expenditure increasing by 3.2% in 2024 compared to 2023, to 254.9 billion euros. The Social Security deficit, set at 8.8 billion euros in 2023 then 10.7 billion in 2024 according to the government’s latest forecasts, might reach 17.5 billion by 2027.

The 18th

This is the 18th time that this constitutional tool has been used by Elisabeth Borne, or on her behalf, since her appointment to Matignon. The 17th was triggered on November 23 during the final reading of the 2023-2027 public finance programming law in order to have it adopted without a vote. This time, it was the Minister of Relations with Parliament, Franck Riester, who activated it, in the absence of Elisabeth Borne, on an official trip to Ireland.

As a reminder, 49.3 allows adoption of the text without a vote, except in the event of a motion of censure. La France Insoumise also announced the submission of one of them as soon as 49.3 was drawn by Elisabeth Borne. “Social Security is the largest public spending budget in the country. We might wait until the right of parliamentarians to decide on its resources is respected: this will not happen”, denounced the Insoumis in the text of their motion. But it should, like the others, fail to obtain a majority of the votes of the deputies.

In other words, the government will see this part of the text adopted, before a very probable new 49.3 on the “expenses” part.

(With AFP)