AFP, published on Monday June 29, 2020 at 18h56
To the aid of tourism, the automobile and even aeronautics: the National Assembly began Monday the examination of a third budget rectified in the face of the “economic storm” of the coronavirus, the left and part of the majority claiming ecological and social compensation in the event of public aid.
The object of more than 2,000 amendments, the bill, on the menu all week, expects a historic recession of 11% of GDP in 2020, a deficit that is still widening (11.4%) and a public debt that is swelling to 120.9% of GDP.
At the opening, the Minister of the Economy Bruno Le Maire evoked a “cantonment” of this “Covid debt”, a treatment with share which could make it possible to spread out in time its amortization. He also repeated expecting “800,000 job cuts at least by the end of 2020”.
According to him, “it will take us at least two years to find the level of GDP that we had managed to reach at the end of 2019. It will take us two years but we will do it,” he said.
The forecast remains very uncertain. Secretary of State Agnès Pannier-Runacher has already mentioned for “September” the presentation of a fourth rectified budget, which could incorporate broader stimulus measures.
Because this amending finance bill N.3 provides above all for “sectoral support and emergency plans”: 18 billion euros for the tourism sector, one of the most affected by containment, 15 billion euros in support of aeronautics or the 8 billion euros of the automobile plan.
This “PLFR 3” must also endorse 4.5 billion euros in state support for local authorities, when their revenues are melting with the crisis.
For the most affected sectors, the government releases around 45 billion euros. And he claims since the beginning of the crisis a total support of “460 billion euros”, if we integrate the loans or simple guarantees of the State.
Budget Minister Gérald Darmanin also underlined the government’s support for “all businesses, whatever their sector and whatever their size, who will be able to benefit from exceptional payments, up to 36 months, to pay contributions and their remaining taxes. “
The discussions this week promise to be fueled by ecological counterparts to public aid, demanded in particular by the left and environmental NGOs. “On this, we do not all have the same opinion in the majority”, recognizes the general rapporteur Laurent Saint-Martin (LREM).
“This is not the time to lay down conditions for emergency cash flow measures”, laments an LREM figure, confident however to find “common ground”, with conditionality for certain large companies.
– “Ecological transition” –
Monday, Bruno Le Maire said that “in all sectoral plans (…), massive investments will be made for the ecological transition”.
Forty deputies, including the majority, also called for incorporating from this PLFR 3 certain measures proposed by the Citizen’s Climate Convention. During a meeting at the Elysée with the 150 members of this convention, Emmanuel Macron however announced Monday a specific bill at the end of the summer.
Faced with the crisis in the building sector, an amendment to the government budget should also debate the environmental plan: he wants to postpone for one year the removal of a tax benefit on non-road diesel (GNR).
In addition, the left opposition is again calling for the reinstatement of the solidarity tax on capital. With the alter-globalization movement Attac, the socialist, communist and LFI groups pleaded for more “tax justice” before the Palais Bourbon.
But the government rules out any tax hike and considers the reinstatement of the wealth tax as a “rear guard” debate and a measure likely to “discourage investment”.
On the left, the Insubmissive Jean-Luc Mélenchon defended without success a motion of prior rejection, criticizing the majority for his policy of “supply”, pro-business.
On the right, Eric Woerth (LR) criticized the government for “adding sectoral plans” without “a clear vision”. He would like the executive to accelerate its overall recovery plan, planned for the start of the school year.
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