France's public deficit has become a long-term issue, according to recent reports, no longer a temporary problem but a permanent feature of how the country is governed. In 2024, the public deficit reached 6.1%, more than double the 3% limit set by European Union rules. Public expenditure in France accounts for 57% of its GDP, the highest among major global economies. However, this level of spending has not prevented a structurally higher unemployment rate compared to Germany, a lower durable growth rate than Switzerland or the Netherlands, and a public debt approaching 115% of GDP. Christophe Ramaux, an economist writing in Le Monde, argues that reducing public spending could reduce economic activity, and therefore does not reduce the deficit. This argument, while commonly made, is challenged by the severity of France's fiscal situation. Ramaux's view is contrasted with the idea that public spending must be reduced to ensure the country's financial sustainability. Laurent Wauquiez has called for an additional 20 billion euros in savings in the 2027 budget, a move described as courageous but likely insufficient to address the current trajectory of French public finances. The situation is likened to a ship taking on water from all sides, with no one willing to take action. Every category defends its spending, every lobby blocks reform, and every party avoids touching its electorate. Michel-Édouard Leclerc, in an interview with BFM, stated that freezing pensions is "not acceptable," though repaying 3,200 billion euros of debt may be acceptable for future generations. The real political courage, according to some, would be explaining to the French that the welfare state can only survive if it is sustainable. Leclerc has mentioned having "plans for growth," but growth in France is not decreed from a television studio. It is built by reducing the burden on businesses, simplifying a labor code that discourages hiring, and reducing a tax system that pushes mobile entrepreneurs to leave the country. Neighboring countries like Germany, the Netherlands, and Switzerland found growth through competitiveness, flexibility, and trust in private economic actors, rather than through public spending. While France's deficit may have become structural, the denial of the need for reform is also structural and costly.