The Senate approved in first reading, shortly before 04:00 on Wednesday, the second part of the measures to support purchasing power after a new turn to the right and a boost to the communities. The amended budget for 2022 opens 44,000 million euros in credits, including 9.7 to finance the renationalization of 100% of EDF. In particular, it provides for the continuation of the tariff shield on energy and the fuel discount of 30 cents per liter in September-October and after 10 in November-December, and the revaluation of the index point for officials. Senators voted in favor by 225 votes to 101.
The left voted against. The socialist Rémi Féraud deplored the “social setbacks” added by the senatorial majority, Pascal Savoldelli (CRCE with a communist majority) pointed to “an already clear complicity between the senatorial right and the government”. Christine Lavarde (LR), on the other hand, hailed that the Senate’s contributions “reinforce purchasing power through work”, while the centrist Sylvie Vermeillet made “a mixed report”.
Aid to communities, Vitale biometric card, exceptional back-to-school bonus…
The executive aims for a final adoption of the provisions aimed at responding to runaway inflation by Sunday at the latest. This will be done a priori from Wednesday afternoon for the first part, with the “emergency” bill on which deputies and senators have reached an agreement in a joint joint committee. On Wednesday night, they will also try to find points of agreement on the modification of the finance bill, which could, if agreed, be definitively validated on Thursday.
At the end of the day on Tuesday, the Senate voted with the partial approval of the Government for additional support for communities affected in particular by the increase in energy prices and the increase in the index point for public officials, raising the total allocation to 750 million euros Earlier in the evening, the senators satisfied a strong request from the president of the LR group, Bruno Retailleau, by voting 20 million credits to launch the implementation of a Vitale biometric card. The goal is to fight fraud.
Provoking the clamor of the left, they replaced, against the advice of the Government, the exceptional back-to-school bonus of 100 euros, reserved for the social minimum, for an exceptional increase of 150 euros for the beneficiaries of the activity bonus. “You take advantage of the night to allow yourself to hit the poorest again,” accused environmentalist Thomas Dossus. For the general rapporteur LR Jean-François Husson, it is “a signal” for the working poor who “are often left without help”. “It is the children that you are going to penalize,” launched the socialist Jean-Claude Tissot. An allocation of 40 million euros for food banks, on the other hand, achieved consensus.
“We are burying 35 hours”
Several “hot” points were adopted on Monday, despite the bombardment from the left against “a right-wing alliance” between the government and LR. With the support of Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire, the Senate has perpetuated the increase from 5,000 to 7,500 euros in the ceiling of the tax exemption for overtime, voted by the National Assembly for the year 2022 only.
The High Assembly also voted, but against the government’s advice, the perpetuation of the possibility for companies to buy back RTT days from employees, provided by the deputies only until the end of 2023 – redemption exempt from taxes and contributions. “We are in the middle of the night of August to bury the 35 hours”, Thomas Dossus had already accused, the socialist David Assouline speaking “of a coup”, as well as the unions that rebel against the measure, seen as a bad response. to inflation
“We perfectly accept putting aside the 35 hours, leaving employees free to convert the days of RTT not taken into salary,” said Christine Lavarde. The Senate also voted to abolish the TV license fee, Emmanuel Macron’s promise.
Like the Assembly, the Senate ruled out taxing the “super-profits” of the large groups, but took, in addition to the left, the center group, the second component of the senatorial majority. As for the price of fuel, the general rapporteur did not want to go back on the commitment reached by the Government with the LR deputies. Bruno Le Maire also considered it “wise” to stick to the solution adopted by the National Assembly. He considers it possible to have, with the discounts from the distributors and oil companies, “a price per liter of gasoline or diesel at the beginning of the school year of around 1.50 euros.”
Source: BFM TV
