PARIS (Reuters) -France will accelerate the reduction of its debt while sticking to its policy of lowering taxes for households and businesses, Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said on Thursday.
The French state must reduce public spending, he added, confirming that gas and electricity price caps would end.
Inflation has started to slow and “we will stick to our fiscal policy”, Le Maire said during a visit to the Haute-Savoie department in the French Alps.
France is under pressure to bring finances into balance after Fitch in April cut the country’s rating to AA- over concerns about potential political paralysis and social unrest following an unpopular pension reform.
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne said the French government has no plans to make households pay more taxes, but two government sources said other tax rises were under consideration, as ministers work on finalising the draft 2024 budget.
(Reporting by Dominique Vidalon, editing by Tassilo Hummel and Devika Syamnath)