PARIS — French lawmakers on Friday rejected the government’s draft social security budget bill in committee, according to broadcaster BFM TV.

Despite the removal of several contentious provisions and the adoption of an article suspending the pension reform, lawmakers voted down the proposed social security budget in committee before it heads to the National Assembly on Tuesday.

After rejecting the revenue section earlier in the week, lawmakers also voted against the spending portion, effectively dismissing the entire draft budget bill.

Earlier in the day, lawmakers approved the suspension of the country’s contested 2023 pension reform by a vote of 22–12.

Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu proposed suspending the reform on Oct. 14 until the next presidential election, pledging no increase in the retirement age before January 2028.

The move was aimed at addressing opposition demands and avoiding censure from the Socialist Party.

The pension reform, introduced in 2023 under former Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne and defended by successive governments, sought to gradually raise the retirement age from 62 to 64, sparking one of the longest strike waves in decades.

Lawmakers also rejected a proposal to introduce the Zucman tax — a 2% minimum levy on fortunes above €100 million ($116.25 million).

Socialist parliamentary leader Boris Vallaud criticized the government following the rejection, telling Lecornu: “By your intransigence, I fear you are taking the wrong path. I tell you, Mr. Prime Minister, there has not been, since we have been in this chamber, the slightest compromise.” — Agencies