In a Le Monde op-ed, financier Jean Gatty criticizes France's projected 2026 budget deficits and suggests adopting a Warren Buffett-inspired measure to bar lawmakers' re-election if the deficit exceeds 3% of GDP.
France's 2026 state budget projects 402 billion euros in revenues, 526 billion in expenditures, and a 124 billion deficit, according to Jean Gatty's Le Monde op-ed. For social security, figures show 660 billion in revenues, 677 billion in expenditures, and a 17 billion deficit, adding 141 billion euros to the debt. No measures have been discussed for balancing the budget in 2027 or beyond.
Gatty questions the recurring public deficits, noting that state budgets balance only every 40 or 50 years, unlike businesses (1.2% failure rate in France in 2025, or 68,000 out of 5.9 million) or households (1.9% over-indebted in 2023, or 586,000 out of 30 million). He explains that states can borrow without repayment constraints, unlike individuals and companies.
Drawing from Warren Buffett, Gatty quotes the American billionaire: “We could solve the deficit in five minutes. Just pass a law that says any time there's a deficit of more than 3% of GDP, all sitting members of Congress are ineligible for re-election. Then you'd get the incentives right. It's doable.” This proposal aims to align lawmakers' incentives with fiscal discipline.
