French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu attends a session of two motions of censure against his government presented by the far-left wing Nouveau Front Populaire (NFP) and the far-right wing Rassemblement National (RN) in the National Assembly in Paris, France on January 14, 2026.Photo:Mustafa Yalcin/AA
ISTANBUL
France’s premier is planning to use a constitutional maneuver to push through the 2026 budget, broadcaster BFM TV learned on Monday.
Sebastien Lecornu reportedly decided to resort to Article 49.3 to get the entire 2026 budget adopted after months of debate in the National Assembly.
Lecornu reportedly weighed the pros and cons right up to the end before making the decision.
If used, Article 49.3 could be invoked from Tuesday on the revenue section of the draft budget bill, then again days later on spending, before the text moves to the Senate and returns to the assembly for a final use of the measure.
Article 49.3 allows Lecornu to bypass a vote in the National Assembly on the budget, provided he survives a no-confidence motion. If, however, he fails to survive the motion of no-confidence, the law gets rejected and the government collapses.
Provided that Lecornu withstands the no-confidence motions throughout the process, a final budget could be passed around mid-February.
Lecornu had previously pledged not to use the Article 49.3 to force the budget through, granting lawmakers unusual freedom to reshape the bill but also raising the risk of legislative deadlock.
