Appearing on the programme QR on Wednesday evening, Georges-Louis Bouchez defended the historic €32 billion fiscal consolidation, financed 80% by savings and reforms and only 20% by new revenue, while maintaining the MR's key objective: guaranteeing at least €500 net difference between working and not working.
From 2026, work will pay more thanks to a strengthened job bonus for low and middle incomes, the gradual increase of the tax-free allowance from €10,000 to €15,000, better deductibility for dependent children, tax exemption for overtime and a more attractive framework for flexi-jobs.
The MR President contrasts this course with socialist management, which turned promises into debt, with pensions and minimum benefits raised without solid funding and inflation that exceeded 10% under the previous government before falling back to around 1% under the current government, without the left. On indexation: the automatic system does not change, the adjustments are temporary, unlike the past manipulations of the shopping basket by the left, while politicians themselves will receive no indexation at all.
Regarding VAT, Georges-Louis Bouchez recalled that the MR is against any change to existing rates. He justifies aligning the rate to 12% for chips and takeaway meals, which are already billed as such in practice, while also planning a VAT cut on non-alcoholic drinks to give the hospitality sector some breathing room, stressing that traditional caterers are not targeted. He also points out that hotel bookings already paid for will remain at 6%, in line with the European principle that the moment of the transaction counts, not that of the stay.
Against this backdrop, the MR President warns against countries that over-tax and drive away capital and talent, and reaffirms his conviction: there is no manna from heaven, the real solution lies in investment, wealth creation and the courage to cut public spending rather than burdening the middle class further.