Senator criticizes education budget as lacking ambition

Senator Olivier Paccaud, responsible for reviewing the education mission's budget, said the proposed budget does not show enough ambition in addressing staffing issues. He believes the drop in student numbers should be used to fund other priorities, like teacher salaries, and plans to push for better pay for mid-career teachers.

Finance commission holds off on budget decision

The finance commission has not yet made a decision on the school education budget credits, waiting for more details from the Minister of National Education and the Minister of Higher Education. A government representative told the commission that creating new teaching positions would cost around 300 million euros, but it is unclear if this will come from existing funds or a larger budget.

Education budget includes significant payroll increase

The 2027 school education budget includes an increase of 1.2 billion euros, mainly due to changes in payroll. Initially, the finance bill proposed cutting 3,644 teacher jobs, partly because of changing school demographics. However, the government is expected to revise this number significantly in response to student protests.

Secondary education will see net job creation

For secondary education, the original budget proposed nearly 1,000 job cuts, but this will result in 1,700 net new jobs. These new positions aim to limit class sizes to 28 students in second-year classes and to hire more vocational teachers.

Senator calls the budget shift a major change

Olivier Paccaud described the shift in the education budget as a "huge change in philosophy." He said the new hires would have a major impact on the education system. However, he expressed concerns that the approach to handling declining student numbers might not be the best, citing poor PISA test results as evidence that simply increasing resources might not improve outcomes.

Report predicts significant drop in student numbers

A report reviewed by the finance commission shows that by 2035, the school system will have lost 1.5 million students, a 13% decrease. This is due to the country's demographic trends. In the 2026 school year, student numbers dropped by 161,000, and this decline is expected to reach 180,000 in 2027, or 2%.

Senator notes class sizes will shrink

Olivier Paccaud noted that the number of students per class will decrease in the coming years. France is slightly above the average for OECD countries in this regard, but he warned that the demographic decline will soon bring France in line with or even surpass other countries in this area.

Senator calls budget lacking in staffing ambition

Even before the government announced its position, Olivier Paccaud said the finance bill was "lacking ambition" in terms of staffing. He argued that the draft budget does not help save money, which is needed to improve the state's financial situation. However, he saw the demographic decline as an opportunity to fund priorities in education, such as increasing the number of substitute teachers.

Report highlights challenges in teacher recruitment

The report points out that the teaching profession is not very attractive, and recruitment difficulties continue despite recent reforms in teacher training. A recent OECD report found that France is among the countries with the weakest salary growth for teachers in their first 15 years of work.

Senator emphasizes the need for higher teacher salaries

Olivier Paccaud stressed the importance of increasing teacher salaries, calling it a priority. He plans to propose amendments that would speed up the process of moving teachers to higher salary scales. A decree to address mid-career salary issues was nearly completed in 2025 but was stopped by the government's decision to freeze civil servant salaries.

Estimated cost of salary increases is manageable

The cost of increasing teacher salaries would be relatively low, with an estimated 22 million euros in the first year and a total of 106 million euros by 2030. Olivier Paccaud suggested using funds from the Teacher Pact, which provides extra pay for voluntary teachers, to cover the cost of this reform.

Senator plans to cut funding for two education organizations

Olivier Paccaud also plans to propose reducing the budget for two organizations linked to the education ministry. He wants to cut Onisep's budget by an additional three million euros, saying its work overlaps with regional authorities. He also aims to save 10 million euros from the Canopé Network, noting that its responsibilities overlap with other institutions like INSPÉ or EAFC.