France found itself at the epicenter of a mounting crisis on September 18, 2025, as hundreds of thousands of citizens took to the streets in a sweeping wave of strikes and protests. The catalyst for this nationwide upheaval? A fiercely contested budget plan that has ignited deep anxieties over the country’s economic future and exposed sharp political fault lines at the heart of Europe’s second-largest economy.
By early morning, the scale of the disruption was already clear. Authorities reported 40 blockades scattered across the country, from Paris to Toulon, with significant demonstrations underway in key cities such as Var, Caen, and Finistère. The day’s events led to 30 arrests by midday, and Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau warned that the mobilization was “very, very strong,” with public services, education, transport, agriculture, industry, and entertainment all feeling the impact, according to Caliber.Az, citing Anadolu Agency.
The protests, orchestrated by France’s largest trade union federations, were a direct response to austerity measures introduced by former Prime Minister François Bayrou. Announced in July, Bayrou’s budget framework sought to slash nearly €44 billion ($51 billion) in public spending by 2026 in an attempt to rein in France’s ballooning public debt, which has now soared to 113% of GDP. The government’s deficit sits at 5.8% of GDP—almost double the European Union’s 3% ceiling—making it one of the highest in the bloc.
Anger over these fiscal plans was palpable. Teachers, train drivers, pharmacists, hospital staff, and even students joined the day of action. One in three primary school teachers walked off the job, and students blocked entrances to high schools, including the Lycée Maurice Ravel in Paris, brandishing placards that read, “Block your high school against austerity,” as reported by Reuters. The education sector’s participation was particularly striking, with 33% of primary school teachers on strike and pupils gathering to block school entrances across the capital.
Public transport faced severe disruptions: many Paris metro lines were suspended for most of the day, except during rush hours. Regional trains were heavily affected, though most high-speed TGV lines continued to operate. Protesters also blocked a highway near Toulon, and even France’s nuclear sector felt the effects, with workers at EDF reducing power output at the Flamanville 1 reactor, resulting in a 1.1 gigawatt drop in nuclear production.
Pharmacists, too, joined the fray, protesting changes that threatened their businesses. The USPO pharmacists’ union reported that 98% of surveyed pharmacies could close for the day. The farmers’ union Confederation Paysanne called for mobilization, adding to the chorus of discontent from virtually every corner of French society.
Union leaders were unequivocal in their demands. They called for the scrapping of the previous government’s “brutal” and “unfair” fiscal plans, an increase in spending on public services, higher taxes on the wealthy, and the abandonment of unpopular pension reforms that would require people to work longer before retirement. In a joint statement, the main unions declared, “The workers we represent are angry.” CGT union chief Sophie Binet, after meeting with new Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu, insisted, “We will continue to mobilize as long as there is no adequate response. The budget will be decided in the streets.”
President Emmanuel Macron and his freshly appointed Prime Minister, Sébastien Lecornu, now face a daunting political and economic challenge. Following the collapse of François Bayrou’s government—brought down by a no-confidence vote in the National Assembly on September 8—Macron tapped Lecornu to lead a new government and steer France out of its deepening fiscal crisis. Lecornu, for his part, has signaled a willingness to compromise on Bayrou’s budget plans, but with parliament deeply divided and reliant on cross-party support, the path forward remains fraught with uncertainty.
To maintain public order, the Ministry of the Interior deployed more than 80,000 police officers and gendarmes nationwide, backed by 24 Centaure armored vehicles, ten water-launching units, drones, and riot squads—a level of preparedness not seen since the height of the Yellow Vest movement. Retailleau warned that as many as 8,000 “troublemakers” could attempt to sow disorder and clash with police throughout the day.
Estimates suggested that up to 800,000 demonstrators could participate in the day’s strikes and marches, a dramatic escalation from the previous week’s “Block Everything” campaign, which mobilized nearly 197,000 people nationwide. The unrest reflects not only widespread anger over austerity but also deeper anxieties about the direction of the French and European economies.
Indeed, France’s fiscal woes are far from unique. According to The European Conservative, the risk of a full-scale debt crisis now looms over the entire euro zone. Six countries—including France—have debt-to-GDP ratios above 100%, and from 2020 to 2023, nations such as Austria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, and Slovakia have all seen their debt ratios rise. Financial institutions across the EU are heavily invested in government debt, increasing the risk of a banking crisis if credit ratings falter.
During the Great Recession of 2008, the European Central Bank (ECB) intervened to stabilize financial institutions and prevent a continent-wide banking meltdown. However, the ECB’s ability to act decisively in the current crisis is limited by an already swollen money supply, which leaves little room for further monetary expansion without triggering inflation. As The European Conservative notes, “only a small salvage program for credit-suffering governments risks a rapid eruption of monetary inflation.”
Not all EU states face the same level of vulnerability. Hungary, for example, has successfully encouraged households to invest in government debt, reducing its reliance on foreign creditors and providing a measure of protection against the looming “debt storm.” In contrast, France’s debt is primarily owned by financial institutions and foreign investors, leaving it more exposed to international shocks and banking sector instability.
The current crisis has revived memories of previous fiscal emergencies in Europe, such as the sovereign debt crisis that engulfed Greece and others following the Great Recession. Back then, harsh austerity measures were imposed to align debt ratios with more fiscally stable euro zone members. Today, however, the public’s tolerance for austerity is far lower, and the political appetite for tax hikes or deep spending cuts is limited.
For now, France stands at a crossroads. The government must navigate a fraught political landscape, address the legitimate concerns of millions of citizens, and find a way to restore fiscal stability without tipping the country—or the euro zone—into a deeper crisis. Whether Macron and Lecornu can forge a path forward that balances economic necessity with social justice remains to be seen. But as the events of September 18 made clear, the stakes could hardly be higher, and the eyes of Europe are watching closely.
France’s day of reckoning has begun, and its outcome may shape the future of the entire European project.