French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has engaged his government's responsibility on the revenues section of the 2026 budget, invoking Article 49 paragraph 3 of the Constitution for the first time. This measure, the first in a series of three, comes after over 350 hours of stalled debates in the National Assembly. Left-wing and far-right oppositions are preparing no-confidence motions, but socialists and Republicans will abstain.
On Tuesday, January 20, 2026, before a sparsely attended hemicycle of the National Assembly, Sébastien Lecornu officially invoked Article 49 paragraph 3 to pass without a vote the revenues section of the 2026 finance bill. “The Parliament, unable to fully take its responsibility to give a budget to the nation due to actions by various political groups (…) who will have to account for this to the French people, the government engages its responsibility,” declared the prime minister, expressing bitterness and regret at breaking his autumn 2025 promise not to use this tool.
This choice, described as “more respectful of Parliament” by government spokesperson Maud Bregeon, follows the failure of a compromise despite concessions secured, particularly from the Socialist Party (PS). The latter sees advances in the budget such as the removal of the income tax bracket freeze, an increase in the activity bonus for low-wage workers, and the generalization of 1-euro meals for students. PS First Secretary Olivier Faure confirmed on France Inter: “We will not censure the government.” Similarly, the Republicans (LR), though critical of an “imperfect” budget leading to a 5% GDP deficit instead of 4.7%, will not vote the motions, according to Laurent Wauquiez and Bruno Retailleau.
In response, La France Insoumise (LFI), the Gauche Démocrate et Républicaine group (GDR, communists), Ecologists, and the Rassemblement National (RN) with the Union des Droites pour la République have filed no-confidence motions. Éric Coquerel (LFI) denounced “a budget of cuts, (…) a budget of inequality (…) that does not meet the needs of the French.” These motions are expected to be examined on Friday, but their passage seems unlikely without PS and LR support. Emmanuel Macron praised a budget that “contains the deficit at 5%” and “allows the country to move forward.” Lecornu plans to invoke 49.3 again on Friday for the expenditures section, aiming for promulgation by mid-February.
