Representatives from the ecologist and communist groups boycotted a January 6 meeting at Bercy on the 2026 budget, claiming no illusions about the debate's outcome. Only the socialists from the left attended, alongside Republicans and Macronists. This absence hinders the bill's adoption in the Assembly and bolsters the likelihood of using article 49.3.
Following the failure of the joint parliamentary commission (CMP) on December 19, 2025, the 2026 finance bill returned to the National Assembly for a new reading. The Finance Committee will debate it on Thursday and Friday, before plenary sessions from January 13 to 23.
The Ministry of Economy invited parliamentary groups on Monday, excluding La France Insoumise and Rassemblement National, to address sticking points. However, the ecologists, led by Marine Tondelier, and the GDR communists declined. "We won't put on a show, staging a discussion we know can't lead to compromise," Benjamin Lucas-Lundy, ecologist spokesperson, told AFP, citing incompatible budget visions.
GDR president Stéphane Peu stated he did not want to "create the illusion that there might be even the slightest hope of our group abstaining or, worse, voting for this budget." Ecologists regret the government did not propose a new budget after the CMP failure.
Despite the absences, the meeting with PS, LR, and Macronists lasted over four hours and was "very constructive," per Bercy, reaffirming the goal to reduce the deficit to 5% of GDP.
Ecologists' stance is closely watched: they mostly abstained on the social security budget in December, enabling its passage. But a vote against is "more than probable," said deputy Danielle Simonnet. Socialists promise at best abstention.
Resort to article 49.3, allowing adoption without a vote in exchange for PS non-censure commitment, looms large. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu renounced it in October 2025 at socialists' request. PS spokesperson Romain Eskenazi rules out no principled opposition if a "non-censure pact" is negotiated, as in early 2025 with François Bayrou. PS Senate leader Patrick Kanner says it "cannot be ruled out definitively." PS deputy François Hollande sees "no other way out."
