On November 12, the National Assembly of France, which is the lower house of parliament, decided to suspend the pension reform. A total of 255 deputies voted in favor, while 146 opposed it.
According to the new amendment, the retirement age will remain at 62 years and nine months until the presidential elections in 2027. This means that the planned increase to 64 years, proposed by President Emmanuel Macron, will not come into effect.
“This decision will allow three and a half million French people to retire earlier,” noted Socialist Party deputy Mélanie Tomin.
According to government estimates, this concession will result in a budget loss of 400 million euros in 2026 and up to 1.8 billion euros in 2027. Now, parliamentarians must consider the possibility of increasing the general social contribution (CSG) to finance the suspension of the reform. This decision must also be approved by the Senate, the upper house of parliament.
Political Situation
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu proposed to temporarily halt the reform on October 14, immediately after his reappointment as head of government. This demand became crucial for the Socialists, whose votes are necessary to prevent a vote of no confidence and to approve the budget for 2026, which proved too difficult for his predecessor François Bayrou.
Controversial Pension Age Reform
The law, which provides for an increase in the retirement age from 62 to 64 years, was signed by Emmanuel Macron in April 2023. The president justified the need for this step by the deficit in the pension fund. The document was adopted using Article 49.3 of the Constitution, which allows bypassing parliamentary voting.
This procedure caused widespread discontent: according to polls, the majority of French people rejected the reform, and mass protests took place across the country.
One of the conditions for the Socialists' support for the government was the cessation of the application of Article 49.3, which Lecornu promised to fulfill.
