French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou said Tuesday his government will focus on stability, dialogue and profound reforms, especially on pensions.

In his general policy speech, Bayrou emphasized the urgency of reducing France’s historic public debt and achieving financial stability. “France has never been as indebted as it is today,” he noted.

To reduce the deficit to 5.4 percent of GDP by 2025 and further to around 3 percent by 2029, Bayrou urged all ministries to implement profound reforms. He announced plans to sell public assets to establish a special fund dedicated to state reform, financed through real estate assets.

Bayrou assured that his government would limit tax hikes and pursue a “massive de-bureaucratization” to simplify processes for citizens and businesses.

Stressing the need to rebuild democratic trust, he proposed creating a “democracy bank” to ensure independent financing of political parties and election campaigns.

Bayrou also vowed to reopen talks on reforming pensions, which he describes as “vital” for France.

Dismissing the idea of suspending or repealing the disputed 2023 law, which set the retirement age to rise to 63 by the end of 2026 and 64 by 2030, Bayrou said he would present a new version of the pension reform in the budget bill for 2026.

Stressing “a window of opportunity is opening”, he noted that “We can, I am convinced, seek a new path of reform, without totems or taboos, not even the retirement age, provided that it meets the set requirement.”

Read more @chinadaily