Édouard Philippe, a French politician and candidate of the Horizons party, sharply criticized Marine Le Pen's plans, the candidate of the National Rally (RN), at a competitiveness meeting held on Tuesday, stating that these plans "may endanger Europe".
Criticism of the EU budget
Philippe specifically referred to Le Pen's proposal to cut more than 11 billion euros from France's contribution to the European Union by 2027, describing it as "dangerous". He believes that this action could lead to severe tensions with France's partners and reduce the country's influence in Brussels.
Financial impacts on municipalities
Additionally, the mayor of Harfleur pointed to the National Rally party's financial efforts to pressure municipalities. Le Pen claims that this party intends to impose 8.2 billion euros on municipalities in 2027 and 12 billion euros the following year. Philippe emphasized that "reducing municipal budgets means reducing public investments" and this issue could have serious consequences for public services.
Furthermore, Philippe reiterated his criticisms of the National Rally party's financial estimates, stating that Le Pen has proposed savings worth 140 billion euros, but "cannot accurately calculate these figures". He specifically referred to the National Rally's pension reforms, stating that the party's estimated 9 billion euros may actually be around 30 billion euros more.
Philippe's criticisms of Le Pen's plans reflect serious tensions in France's economic and social policies and seem to indicate that this will be one of the main focal points of the upcoming electoral competitions. Given that Le Pen enjoys high popularity in polls, concerns about the implications of her plans for the economic and social situation in France and Europe have increased.
