PARIS (Realist English). Former French president François Hollande said on Thursday that his Socialist Party (PS) is ready to compromise on its flagship wealth tax proposal to help pass the 2026 budget and prevent another government collapse.
“We need a budget that will please no one, that will be claimed by no one, but that can allow the country to continue on,” Hollande told the Financial Times.
The moderate socialist, now a member of parliament, suggested his party would be prepared to drop the so-called Zucman tax, a 2% annual levy on fortunes above €100 million named after economist Gabriel Zucman. The measure has drawn fierce opposition from business groups and economists, who warn it could stifle investment and drive capital out of France.
The PS had threatened to bring down Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu’s minority government unless wealthier households faced higher taxes. But Hollande said the Socialists are “not wedded” to Zucman’s model and are willing to consider other ways to raise revenue.
Party leaders on Monday submitted a revised amendment proposing a lighter version of the tax — a 3% levy starting at €10 million, with exemptions for innovative and family-owned companies. Other alternatives include new taxes on holding companies and inheritances, Hollande said, with the goal of raising €8–10 billion instead of the €6.5 billion projected in Lecornu’s draft budget.
“There are several options,” Hollande said. “Not all of them will be accepted, but the Socialists must see a return.”
The Socialists have emerged as kingmakers in France’s fractured parliament, following President Emmanuel Macron’s failed snap elections last year that left no party with a majority. Lecornu, Macron’s third prime minister in a year, has faced multiple confidence votes as his government struggles to pass legislation.
Hollande credited Macron for finally allowing Lecornu enough autonomy to negotiate.
“What [Macron] is doing now, or allowing to happen, is what he should have done from the start — appointing a prime minister who can build a political compromise to keep the country running until 2027,” Hollande said.
During his own presidency (2012–2017), Hollande imposed several taxes on wealth and high incomes, many of which Macron later repealed as economy minister.
With Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally leading the polls ahead of the 2027 presidential election, Hollande urged moderation.
“This phase of radicalism on the left has reached its ceiling,” he said. “The centre-left must use this time to rebuild and prepare for the future.”
