France’s 2027 Social Security financing bill begins its Senate review on Wednesday, November 4, with an examination by the Social Affairs Committee. The committee stage will give senators a chance to set out their priorities, including on pensions, but the Senate will work from the government’s original draft when its full review begins on November 9. A final vote is scheduled for November 18.
The bill’s prospects remain uncertain after the National Assembly substantially altered the draft and rejected it at the end of October. Only one MoDem lawmaker supported it. The government has not said whether it will use Article 49.3 to overcome opposition in the Assembly or take the unprecedented route of adopting the measures by ordinance.
The Senate’s right-wing and centrist majority is expected to support the bill, which includes significant efforts to reduce spending. The government aims to bring the Social Security deficit to €12.7 billion in 2027, down from €21.8 billion in 2026.
Centrist Senate rapporteur Olivier Henno said senators intended to preserve that target, calling it a financial and moral obligation. He described the task as difficult and said the draft contained no structural reform. The Senate majority also plans to propose restoring the pension reform suspension granted last year by Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu. Henno estimated that reinstating the reform could raise about €600 million in 2027.
The government’s draft would limit above-inflation pension increases to retirees receiving €1,260 a month or less—about one-third of pensioners. The Senate committee could propose raising that threshold to €1,400 or €1,500 to reduce the impact on smaller pensions, according to parliamentary sources cited by Agence France-Presse.
After a rapid, closed-door review on Wednesday morning, the committee’s rapporteurs are due to present their positions at a 2 p.m. news conference.
Sources: Le Monde Politique.