France’s Prime Minister François Bayrou has tied his government’s survival to €44 billion in cuts. Ahead of the Sept 8 confidence vote, Philippa Sigl-Glöckner talks with Clara Leonard (Institut Avant-Garde) about austerity, political risks, and what’s at stake for democracy.Takeaways:France faces political turmoil as PM Bayrou ties his government’s survival to €44 billion in budget cuts. Public resistance is high, with austerity measures hitting the most vulnerable while failing to address deeper structural issues. Comparisons to Greece are misleading, yet political instability is already raising France’s borrowing costs. In the long term, austerity risks undermining growth and democracy—fiscal space remains above all a political choice.Philippa Sigl-Glöckner, Dezernat ZukunftClara Leonard, Institut Avant-Garde

For further reading:The French Constitution

Prime Minister François Bayrou’s videos on the current situation