The result of the vote on the Social Security financing bill for 2026 (PLFSS) at the Assemblée Nationale, in Paris on December 9, 2025. ALAIN JOCARD / AFP
France's Assemblée Nationale on Tuesday, December 9, narrowly approved a social security budget, clearing a major hurdle for Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu as he seeks to finalize a 2026 spending plan by year-end.
The Assemblée backed the measure, which includes the suspension of an unpopular pension reform, by 247 votes to 234, and it will now head back to the Sénat before returning to the lower chamber. Lecornu hailed the outcome of Tuesday's vote, thanking what he called a "responsible majority."
France, the eurozone's second-largest economy, is under pressure to cut its budget deficit but efforts have been hamstrung by a fragmented parliament, the result of snap elections President Emmanuel Macron called last year.
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