The social security financing bill (PLFSS) for 2026 was narrowly adopted in the French National Assembly on December 9, 2025, by just 13 votes. The vote highlighted fractures within the former majority, including abstentions from Horizons deputies and support from Renaissance and MoDem. Republicans also split, weakening their leader Bruno Retailleau's authority.
On Tuesday, December 9, 2025, the French National Assembly narrowly adopted the social security financing bill (PLFSS) for 2026 by 13 votes. The vote deepened rifts within the central bloc. Horizons deputies, led by Édouard Philippe, abstained, rejecting a compromise "at any price." In contrast, Renaissance and MoDem voted in favor, opting for "a bad budget rather than no budget."
Édouard Philippe criticized the lack of sufficient efforts to cut debt, highlighting an estimated 24 billion euro deficit for social security in 2026, including state transfers. At a conference on December 10, former Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve backed this view: "In two months, we've gone from a situation where the prime minister told us 'We need a budget to make savings' to one where we're told we need spending to have a budget!", lamenting a lack of "lucidity and political courage."
Among Republicans (LR), Bruno Retailleau urged his 49 deputies to reject the bill, calling it a "socialist budget" that "drives France into the wall." Yet, 18 LR voted for it, 28 abstained, and three voted against, exposing a divide between the party and the parliamentary group led by Laurent Wauquiez. Deputy Nicolas Tryzna remarked: "It's never very pleasant to learn on Sunday evening TV what you should vote or not vote."
Socialists (PS), who voted in favor, aim to secure the Ecologists' abstention for the final vote on December 16. Deputy Laurent Baumel expressed satisfaction with the compromise but caution: "Everything is made and unmade very quickly in the current context." This vote underscores strategic tensions ahead of 2027.
