France Plans €54 Billion Savings Drive in 2027 Budget as Fuel Protests Mount

France's government intends to include a €54 billion savings package in its 2027 budget to prevent the fiscal deficit from spiralling, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said on Thursday, as protests over high fuel prices intensified.

In an interview with Le Figaro, Lecornu described the planned cuts as a major turnaround that would significantly restrain public spending, which he said continues to rise relentlessly each year. He warned that without any cost-saving measures, the 2027 deficit would exceed 6.5% of GDP.

The budget squeeze, he said, is needed to rein in social and local government spending as well as rising borrowing costs. The government is racing to finalise the budget for presentation to a deeply divided parliament at the end of the month, amid a bond market selloff that has pushed French borrowing rates to their highest level since 2008. A presidential election is due next year.

Finance Minister Roland Lescure acknowledged last Friday that fallout from the Middle East crisis meant the government would miss its fiscal deficit target of 5% of GDP this year. Ministers have been consulting with most parties in a bid to craft a budget bill capable of passing parliament, where Lecornu's two predecessors were toppled over previous budgets.

Socialist lawmakers have ruled out giving their support as they did for the 2026 budget, potentially leaving the fate of the 2027 budget in the hands of the far-right National Rally (RN). Its leader, Marine Le Pen, who is frontrunner in the polls for next year's April-to-May two-round presidential election, said on Wednesday that the RN would vote against the budget if it included mooted plans not to raise pensions in line with inflation. She said she disagreed with all the policies the budget reflects, but stopped short of ruling out abstaining, adding that she would examine the bill first and that an imperfect budget was better than none at all.

Meanwhile, fishermen blocked access to ports in southern France on Thursday over high energy prices, the latest in a wave of protests. Workers from the power sector to the police were striking on Tuesday over issues ranging from pay to fuel.

Junior Fisheries Minister Catherine Chabaud said fishermen had agreed after six hours of talks on Thursday to lift blockades at several Mediterranean ports, ending three days of protests over fuel costs. Gérard Corrodano, who represents fishermen in La Ciotat, said the sector was being strangled and suffocated, describing fishermen as the most endangered species in the Mediterranean. On Wednesday, Lecornu extended emergency fuel subsidies until the end of the year for the agriculture, fishing and construction sectors.