Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu engaged his government's responsibility for the third time on Friday, January 30, 2026, using Article 49.3 of the Constitution to pass the 2026 finance bill at the National Assembly. This procedure, the final step after four months of debates, exposes the text to two expected censure motions on Monday, February 2, whose rejection should lead to its definitive adoption. However, a procedural error makes the voted text inaccurate, particularly regarding the balance between tax increases and savings.
The adoption process for France's 2026 budget faced a final twist on Friday, January 30, when Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu activated Article 49, paragraph 3, of the Constitution for the third time. Addressing the National Assembly, he stated plainly: 'France must have a budget. Therefore, before this hemicycle, I engage the government's responsibility on the entire 2026 finance bill, based on Article 49 of the Constitution.'
This move comes after four months of fruitless parliamentary discussions, ending the fragile regime of the special law passed in late December to ensure state continuity. Initially, the government promised to balance public accounts half through spending cuts and half through tax increases. But recent Matignon concessions, prepared by Sébastien Lecornu, have shifted this: now, 75% of the recovery will come from taxes.
An administrative mix-up complicated matters. A key amendment to update the major balances based on recent arbitrations could not be registered at the Assembly due to a 'material error,' according to the executive. As a result, the version submitted for deputies' vote on Monday, February 2, does not reflect reality. 'The introductory article is false,' acknowledged Philippe Juvin (The Republicans), the Assembly's general budget rapporteur, adding that it 'taints the text's sincerity in light of constitutional principles.' His Senate counterpart, Jean-François Husson (LR), agrees.
Following the engagement of responsibility, La France Insoumise (LFI) and the National Rally (RN) filed two separate censure motions, to be examined on Monday at 5 p.m. Their likely rejection, thanks to support from Republicans and socialists, will mean definitive adoption of the budget, which must then pass the Constitutional Council. Public Accounts Minister Amélie de Montchalin hailed an 'imperfect' but useful text to 'exit the climate of uncertainty.' The budget aims to reduce the deficit to 5% of GDP in 2026, from 5.4% in 2025, with concessions like 1-euro student meals and an activity bonus increase.
Despite an initial promise not to use 49.3, Sébastien Lecornu employed it three times: once for revenues, once for expenditures, and this last for the entire text after Senate review.
